Better Than the Lottery
by julesmonster
Summary: In this divergence from cannon, Kurt finds out he is the heir to a fortune, but can only inherit if he marries a person from the "right" sort of family. Of course, no one thought to specify that he had to marry a girl. Kurt/Blaine slash. Set in senior year.
1. Chapter 1

**Better Than the Lottery**

**By Julesmonster**

**Disclaimer:** All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

**A/N:** So, this is a fic that I have worked on for a couple of years. It's a sappy and totally unrealistic thing with little redeeming value other than it made me happy, which is why I kept going back to it over and over again for so long. I like when my boys are happy and safe and together, so there isn't much in the way of angst and only a little bit of drama in this one. Hope you enjoy the teeth-rotting sweetness of this one! Jules

**PS**. Just an FYI. I wrote this for my pleasure, so I did mess with a few canonical facts. Both boys are in the same grade. Kurt doesn't go to Dalton until Senior year… maybe a few other minor changes here and there.

**PPS**. As always, the story is complete and I will post one chapter a day until all eleven chapters are posted.

**Part One**

Kurt Hummel spent his high school years telling his bullies that they would one day work for him. Little did any of those bullies know—or even Kurt for that matter—but he was telling the unvarnished truth. As it is with most small towns in the Midwest, Lima—in fact all of Allen County—relied upon a few key manufacturing industries to fuel the local economy. Sure there were agricultural and service industries, but what brought outside money into the small community and bolstered the economy was manufacturing. And in Lima, that meant one of four factories, all of which were owned by Gentry Industries, a national conglomerate that produced everything from household cleaning products to toiletries to food and beverages. Everyone knew that.

What everyone—including Kurt—did not know was that Kurt Hummel was the sole heir to the Gentry legacy. His great-great-great-grandfather had started the company from the back of a wagon, selling lye soap and tonics to the settlers in the region and the business had grown over the last two hundred years into what it was today. Elizabeth Hummel, nee Gentry, was the only child of an only child of an only child, etc. She was born to them late in life after many failed attempts to carry a child to term. They doted on their little girl and gave her almost anything that she wanted.

Unfortunately, her parents were not pleased that she decided to fall in love with and marry a lowly mechanic. Angry and hurtful words were exchanged. Elizabeth, whose temper was legendary-and inherited by her only child-stormed out of their lives and her parents cut her out of the family.

Or rather, they cut her out until she gave birth to Kurt. The birth of their grandson seemed to heal old wounds on both sides of the divide and brought parents and child back together for a time. But when cancer took Elizabeth too young, they were devastated and once again blamed the poor and lowly mechanic. It didn't matter that Burt Hummel had done everything possible to save his wife, or that he had taken her to the best doctors and hospitals in the state. It didn't matter that he had seen some success in his work and was now the owner of his own shop. It didn't matter that he was a loving father to their grandson or that young Kurt loved both father and grandparents and was desperately missing his mother.

Gerald and Hilda Gentry moved to Europe to try and recover from their devastating loss and never returned to Ohio. The only contact they maintained with Kurt was through birthday and holiday cards and the occasional postcard from their travels. Kurt got past their loss in a way that he never got over his mother's loss. He was young and they had not been a part of his daily life anyway. He looked forward to their brief notes and the inevitable checks that came along with the cards. Those checks went into the bank for college and were used to fund Kurt's growing love of fashion. If he budgeted carefully, he could use his Christmas money to buy clothes for the entire year, leaving birthday, Easter and all the other holiday checks for college.

In the twelve years after his mother's death, Kurt never once realized that the Gentry family from which he hailed was the same Gentry family that employed half of Lima. They were just Nana and Poppa, and they weren't ever around anyway.

Kurt had other things to worry about. He was gay and, in a small town like Lima, small minds abounded. He spent his first three years of high school either ducking away from potential bullies, or getting thrown into dumpsters. It was during those dumpster tosses that his infamous line about the Neanderthals working for him came up for the first time.

And then, a month and a half into Kurt's senior year—only days after his father remarried and Kurt's life was threatened at school by one particularly violent self-hating, closeted homosexual bully—Kurt received a letter from his grandparents' lawyer. While he was sad to learn of their deaths, Kurt wasn't very close to them so he wasn't devastated by the news. But he was confused at first about why he was being contacted by a rather large law firm from New York. His father, who never really liked to talk about his first wife's family, finally explained exactly who they were and what had happened between them. Kurt was confused and hurt by their desertion, but Burt convinced him to go to the meeting with the lawyer. The man had flown all the way from New York, after all. And in that meeting, Kurt's life changed forever.

Gerald Gentry had died two months before and Hilda had died only weeks after her husband. The couple had been very much in love and the loss of her husband had taken any will to live from the elderly woman. The couple had left everything to their only grandson. Though the company had long before gone public and was run by a very capable CEO, they still held a majority of the shares, which would now be passed on to Kurt along with a seat on the Board of Directors. There was a house in Paris, one in New York, one in London, and one outside of Lima that had been sitting empty for the past decade. There were stock portfolios and real estate investments and a trust fund for the college of Kurt's choice. Hell, he had enough money to never work a day in his life and send a whole orphanage of kids to college, along with his step-brother and the entire glee club, and still have enough left over to buy a couple major league sports teams, a yacht, a jet and a circus just for fun.

There was only one stipulation in the will: Kurt had to get married before he could actually lay claim to any of the money other than his educational trust. And it couldn't be to just anyone; he had to marry someone from a respectable family-male or female, his grandparents were apparently snobs but not bigots-who could pass a financial and social background check that would be handled by the law firm acting as executor of the estate. Luckily, the financial requirements weren't so strict as to make it impossible for Kurt to ever meet them, but it would be impossible for any of his few friends to qualify. (Also, there was mention of a prenuptial agreement, but it was stated as a suggestion more than a requirement. Kurt really wasn't fond of the idea of planning for a divorce before the wedding.) Until Kurt got married, however, the money would continue to be managed by the executors.

The promise of an inheritance couldn't have come at a better time. With the recent slump in the economy, Burt's garage had been seeing less business during the economic recession and with hospital bills from Burt's heart attack still coming in and two sons (Kurt and his step-brother Finn) starting college in less than a year, money was more than a little tight. Even if they took Kurt's college costs out of the equation, the family would still be hurting. So, even though Burt assured his son that there was no reason to rush into anything, Kurt decided that the time was right for him to seek out a spouse. He was only a few months from his 18th birthday and he wouldn't need anyone's permission to get married then.

Using the money from his educational trust, Kurt enrolled at Dalton Academy, an all boys' school in Westerville. The boys there were all from families that would meet the strict guidelines set out in his grandparents' will. And as a bonus, the school had a strict no bullying policy.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"I still don't like this," Burt muttered as he stood outside Kurt's new dormitory. He and Finn had moved Kurt into his private room that morning and now Burt was delaying their inevitable goodbyes. "You shouldn't be worrying about money or marriage at your age. You should be having fun with your friends and falling in and out of love every other week just like every other kid."

Kurt sighed. "We've been over this. I'm not going to rush out and marry the first guy I meet who fits the criteria. I promise. But I don't think it's a bad idea to look. Besides, I'll be safer here than I ever was at McKinley. I'm looking forward to not having to worry about being bullied by bigoted Neanderthals. This is the right thing for me, Dad."

"I can still pay for your car," Burt muttered.

"But you don't _have_ to," Kurt said. "The trust fund will pay for it and all my living expenses as long as I'm enrolled here. That leaves you with fewer bills and you'll be able to use that money for the hospital bills. Please, Dad."

Burt Hummel studied his son. "Fine. I'll expect you home at least one weekend a month, if not more often. And I want you to call me every night."

Kurt smiled a little sadly, just as nervous about being on his own as his father. "I promise."

"Good," Burt said and pulled Kurt into a tight hug. "I'm gonna miss you so much, Kiddo."

"I know," Kurt said around the tears clogging his throat. "I'll miss you too. But you've got Carole and Finn there and I'll make new friends here."

"Yeah," Burt said and let Kurt go to swipe at the tears in his eyes. "Call me tonight."

And then Burt got into his truck where Finn was waiting and the two drove away with a final wave.

Kurt heaved a deep sigh and looked around the campus of Dalton. His new home.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

A couple hours later, Kurt wished that he had allowed his father to stick around to help him unpack. He was standing on his desk chair, attempting to hang one of his many framed poster, but couldn't judge if it was hanging straight without climbing up and down a dozen times. It was frustrating in the extreme.

"A little to the left, I think."

It took all Kurt had in him not to jump at the unexpected voice, but he held it together and did as directed.

"I think that will do it."

Kurt nodded happily and stepped down from his chair. He inspected the poster and noted that it was perfectly aligned. "Thanks. Just four more to go."

Kurt turned to finally greet his visitor and was caught off guard by the sheer beauty of the boy in front of him. Dark hair cropped short and curls tamed with too much hair gel only emphasized the perfection of the handsome boy before him.

"I'm Blaine," the boy said with an infectious smile. "I'm your suite mate. We share the sitting room. Lucky for you we don't have to share a bathroom. I take forever in the mornings to get my hair to behave. Is that an original?"

"It hung outside the theater during opening night and was signed by the entire original cast," Kurt said with some pride once he was able to find his voice. "_Wicked_ is my favorite musical. I've also got _RENT_, _Spring Awakening_, _Gypsy_ and _Chicago_; though _Chicago_ and _Gypsy_ aren't from the original productions. Bebe Newerth signed _Chicago_ and Patty Lupone signed _Gypsy_."

"I think I prefer their performances anyway," Blaine said. "You need help hanging the others?"

Kurt graciously accepted and the two boys spent the next hour putting up the framed posters. When they were finished, Blaine fetched drinks from the small dorm fridge in his room and brought them back. He sat on Kurt's bed while Kurt began pinning pictures of his family and old school friends to the cork bulletin board behind his desk.

"So, you're into musicals?" Blaine asked. "Me too, though I tend to prefer some of the rock operas, like _Bare_, to the more traditional shows."

At the mention of _Bare_, Kurt froze for a split second. Bare was about two gay boys in a private Catholic school. While the story was tragic, it was still quite beautiful. And it was obscure enough that Kurt was sure that Blaine was telling him more than just his preference in musicals.

"_Bare_ is pretty great," Kurt agreed and looked over to give Blaine a smile that would let him know that his subtle message had been received. "Though I would have preferred a happier ending for the main characters."

Blaine grinned at him. "Ah, so, you're a romantic at heart."

Kurt considered that. "Despite everything that society teaches us about the impossibility of lasting love, I suppose I am. I want what Belle found in _Beauty and the Beast_. That was my favorite Disney movie growing up."

"Now, I'm more an _Aladdin_ fan myself," Blaine said with a sly grin. "I think it was Aladdin's tiny vest that drew me in."

Kurt had to laugh at that. The image of a young boy lusting over a cartoon character's exposed abs was hilarious to him. "I never considered that. I was more interested in having someone to save me from the Gastons of the world."

Blaine's smile faded. "Is that why you transferred mid semester?"

Kurt nodded. "At least part of the reason. We weren't close or anything, but my grandparents died and left me a trust fund for my education and the timing was perfect since things had gotten pretty bad at my old school."

Kurt had decided against telling anyone about the stipulations in the will or that he stood to inherit a lot more than a trust fund. He wanted to see if he could find the right person for him, not have boys clambering over him to get at his inheritance. He wanted someone to love him, not his money. So, he supposed that made him a romantic, like Blaine said. There would be time to share the truth if he found the right boy.

"That's why I came here too," Blaine admitted quietly but then lightened his tone. "But the guys here are great. And not one of them cares if I like show tunes or Katy Perry."

"Katy Perry?" Kurt asked teasingly. "Oh, that will never do. It's Lady Gaga or nothing."

With that, they both laughed and the tension that had come with the mention of bullies was broken.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Kurt's first days at Dalton were stressful. If it wasn't for Blaine's unflagging optimism, he might have given up and packed his things. The classes were much harder than McKinley. The uniforms, while they looked nice enough on other boys, were stifling to Kurt's fashion sense. And while no one gave him a hard time, it wasn't easy making new friends.

"You should audition for the Warblers," Blaine said on Friday afternoon. "I think you'd have a great time."

"The Warblers?" Kurt didn't even look up from the history text he was studying at the lunch table. He had a quiz right after lunch period.

"Our show choir," Blaine explained. "We're pretty awesome, if I do say so myself. And we're getting ready to go to sectionals. Oh, I guess I should ask if you sing before I make you audition, huh?"

"I do sing," Kurt said as he finally looked at his lunch companion. "In fact, I was in show choir at my old school. And I just happen to have an audition piece prepared on the off chance that Dalton had a show choir."

Blaine bit his lip. "Um, while I love show tunes, the Warblers are a bit different. We're governed by a council of students who have final say in any songs we perform. Not one of them likes musical theater. Singing your audition from one won't keep you out of the club, but it will probably limit your chances of getting a solo later."

Kurt frowned. "So 'Don't Cry for Me Argentina' is out."

Blaine looked impressed. "You can sing that? I didn't realize your range was so high."

"With this voice?" Kurt huffed. "I'm a countertenor. So what genre should I be looking at: pop, rock, indie?"

"Any of those would be fine," Blaine said. "Just no show tunes and no country. We have rehearsal this afternoon. I'll tell the council you want to audition and I'm sure they'll schedule it for Monday. That will leave us the weekend to get you ready."

"Thanks," Kurt said with a smile that was returned from Blaine before he went back to studying.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

They decided on 'Black Velvet' by Allanah Myles. Blaine played guitar to accompany him and lend his voice on the harmonies. It was a perfect range for Kurt's voice, but it was also a good combination of rock and blues to please the council. That Blaine seemed to respond positively to the seductive nature of the song was a bonus in Kurt's mind.

Since fist arriving in Kurt's room, Blaine had taken on the role of friend and mentor to the new kid. He introduced Kurt around and showed him all the ins and outs of the school, but he hadn't made any move to take their friendship to the next level. The more Kurt got to know Blaine, however, the more he wished the other boy would do something to indicate that he was interested in more.

"You're in," Blaine told Kurt with a broad smile after the Warblers rehearsal finally let out on Monday afternoon. "_And_ they want us to work up an acapella arrangement for the song. You'll still have to go through the sectionals auditions with the other boys, but they were really impressed."

Kurt's face lit up. "Oh! That is…" And then Kurt's face fell, "Wait… I've never done an acapella arrangement before."

"Don't worry about it," Blaine said. "I have and I'll help."

"You will?"

"Of course," Blaine said. "I'm so excited that we'll actually be able to perform together!"

"You mean you already have a solo?" Kurt wondered.

Blaine shrugged. "I'm sort of the lead soloist. They always give me at least one, sometimes two solos, for competitions. But I'm a lot better at the upbeat numbers and we still need a slow song, so that's where you come in."

"Would you go out on a date with me?" Kurt blurted out and then flushed with embarrassment. He hadn't meant to say that. He had meant to thank his suite-mate for his help. But now that it was out there…

Blaine looked confused. "You want to go out on a date? With me?"

"Yes," Kurt said firmly.

"Really?" Blaine asked.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Yes."

"Huh," Blaine said with bemusement. "I hadn't even considered… I just figured you'd need a friend. Especially after the bullying at your old school."

"I do need a friend," Kurt said slowly. "But there's nothing that says we can't be friends and date too. In fact, I think the best relationships start out with friendship."

Blaine seemed to consider that. "I never really thought about it that way. I'm not really very good in the romance department. In fact, I have been accused of being completely oblivious more than once. There was a boy when I first came to Dalton… anyway, I guess what I'm trying to say is don't expect me to just know things. I may look like I have it all put together, but I'm as lost as the next guy. Probably more so."

"So is that a yes or a no to the date?" Kurt asked coyly. "Because there's a boy in my chemistry class that's been looking like he's trying to work up the nerve to ask me out. I need to know if I should encourage him."

"No!" Blaine blurted out and then blushed. "I mean, yes, I'd like to go on a date with you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Part Two**

It felt like Kurt had always known he was gay. While other boys played in the mud and made up shooting games, Kurt was content to have tea parties with his dolls and stuffed animals. And when those other boys finally noticed girls, Kurt had already begun planning his dream wedding to an imaginary man that looked suspiciously like Prince Eric from _The Little Mermaid_. In the years that followed, Kurt had imagined many things about his romantic future. In fact, he had his ideal first date planned by the time he was 12.

Unfortunately, Kurt's ideal first date was set in New York. Though Westerville wasn't as bad as Lima, the people there were still relatively limited in their open-mindedness, so any displays of affection had to be restricted to the car. And since there was no romantic five star French bistro, they had to make do with a chain Italian restaurant which was also hosting a rather large family reunion right beside their table. There were no theaters, so they went to a movie instead and were bored to tears by the lackluster rom-com. Of course, when they returned to the parking lot after the movie, they found that Kurt's SUV had a flat tire and they had to change it quickly if they were going to be back at Dalton before curfew. There was no Central Park so there was no long romantic stroll; though the trip from the parking lot to their dorm was rather long, they had to run in order to make it inside before curfew. And when they reached the privacy of their shared sitting room, it was just awkward, neither one of them seemed to know how to go about doing what they both clearly wanted.

They both moved at the same time and instead of their lips meeting in a sweetly passionate kiss, their foreheads bumped and Kurt's nose ended up in Blaine's ear when the other boy turned away in pain.

Still rubbing his forehead, Blaine said with a grimace, "I told you I'm not very good at this stuff."

Kurt couldn't help it. He giggled. And once he started giggling, he couldn't stop. Soon he practically fell onto the sofa, crying with laughter.

Blaine was pouting at first, but eventually, he began to see the humor in the situation and flopped down beside Kurt. "Not exactly the first date I always dreamed."

Kurt finally stopped laughing slowly, his breath still hitching. "Me neither." After a few cleansing breaths, he shared his ideal first date with Blaine.

"The only difference between yours and mine," Blaine told him when Kurt was finished, "is that I would skip the park and go for ice cream cones while we walked through the theater district."

"Mmm, ice cream," Kurt moaned. They had skipped dessert at the restaurant in order to make the movie on time and Kurt had still been too full to really want anything at the cinema. But now, he could really go for something sweet and creamy and cold. "Too bad the dorm fridges don't keep ice cream cold enough."

Blaine's eyes lit up with mischief. "Well, it's supposed to be a secret, but… I think you're trustworthy. Come with me."

Blaine took Kurt's hand and, after checking to see that the hall was clear, dragged him out of their room and down the hall to the back stairs. They went down three flights to the cellar, a part of the dorms that Kurt had only ever been to a couple times to do laundry. They passed the laundry room and continued down the dark corridor until they reached a storage room. Blaine jiggled the locked door handle and the door swung open. The room was lit only by the emergency exit light, but Blaine soon flipped a switch and there was dim light.

"This is the storage room," Blaine explained. "All the furniture not being used is in here. But…" He led Kurt around a maze of stacked sofas, dressers and beds until they reached their destination. "Wes and David brought me here the first time a few months after I started here. It's sort of like a club. There are only maybe ten guys who even know this room exists."

It really was like a clubhouse. They had cleared a space and set up a couple of the sofas into a seating arrangement. There was a round table with six chairs. There was a stereo and a microwave set up on another smaller table. And, in the corner, there was a full size refrigerator. Blaine pulled Kurt over and opened the freezer. Inside was an assortment of pints and boxes of ice cream pops.

"We just have to replace anything we use," Blaine said. "And there's soda in the fridge if you want that."

"Just a fudgesicle, please," Kurt said and gladly accepted the wrapped treat. Blaine grabbed a creamsicle for himself and then led Kurt over to a sofa. "So, only a few students know about this room? Is this where you bring all your hot dates?"

Blaine blushed. "I haven't ever had anyone to bring here, and the others are all straight, so getting girls in here is a bit tricky. Mostly we use it to hide from the underclassmen and just hang out. Once a month we have poker night."

"Sounds fun," Kurt said. In truth he wasn't all that interested in poker, but it would be nice to belong. So far, only Blaine had really welcomed him to Dalton with anything resembling enthusiasm. He said as much to Blaine.

"It isn't you," Blaine said. "Most of the guys here have spent their entire lives together, either going to the same schools or in the same social circles, and anyone new tends to be viewed with suspicion at first. A lot of them have had bad experiences with people trying to use them for their money or whatever so they tend to hold back until they really get to know someone."

Kurt frowned. "I know that I don't come from a rich family, and my dad's a mechanic, but I didn't realize that would make people judge me."

"They aren't _judging_," Blaine said, endearingly earnest. "They're just cautious. After your experiences, wouldn't you be cautious if some football player came up and wanted to be friends? You might not reject their friendship outright, but you would be wary at first. Well, it's the same with a lot of the boys here. It isn't that they're snobs, just that they have a hard time trusting someone new."

Kurt shrugged, not totally appeased. "I suppose."

They finished their treats and then snuck back up to their rooms. Back in the sitting room, Blaine took Kurt's hand. "I really did have a great time tonight. Even that awful movie was fun because we could trash it together. And I've never seen anyone change a tire as quickly as you."

"Not our ideal first date," Kurt said with a smile. "But pretty perfect in all its imperfection."

"Exactly," Blaine said and leaned forward to capture Kurt's lips.

They both decided that, as far as first kisses went, it too was rather perfectly imperfect.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

In the days and weeks that led up to sectionals, Kurt found himself falling in love with Blaine. They spent time together working on the arrangement for Kurt's solo, but they also went out together on dates. Sometimes they were simply trips to the local coffee shop. Sometimes it was dinner. Sometimes it was watching Disney movies in their shared sitting room. It didn't really matter to either boy what they did as long as they were able to do it together.

As Blaine's boyfriend—which became official after their second date—Kurt found more acceptance from the other seniors. They trusted Blaine and if Blaine trusted Kurt then he probably wasn't a user or gold-digger. Add to that, Kurt's growing popularity in the Warblers due to his unique talents, and Kurt's life was pretty good.

Then the Warblers discovered who their competition would be at sectionals and suddenly Kurt was being watched with suspicion once again. He had made no secret of the fact that he had been in New Directions before coming to Dalton, so everyone in the Warblers knew that they were competing against his former teammates.

Blaine tried to be supportive, but Kurt found it increasingly difficult to ignore the dark looks and suspicion. "What do they think? That I paid a fortune to come to this school just to sabotage them?"

"It wouldn't be the first time," Blaine said. "Two years ago, the year before I came here, there was a kid from Carmel who transferred in and wreaked havoc. I think their boosters actually paid his tuition."

Kurt sighed. "Let me guess. Jesse St. James?"

Blaine looked shocked. "You know him?"

Kurt nodded. "He did the same to New Directions last year. Dated our best female singer and then dumped her right before the competition. Worse, he and his teammates egged her. And she's vegan. She cried about the damned baby chickens for days. But Blaine, I would never do something like that. It's just…mean. I can be a bitch, but I'm not mean."

"I know," Blaine assured him. "I _know_ you wouldn't do something like that. And they'll know it too after we kick ass at sectionals."

And so Kurt put everything into winning. He would give no one an excuse to blame him if they didn't win. He was almost fanatical about getting every step and note perfect.

The day of sectionals finally came and the Warblers were loaded onto a rather nice coach bus—which certainly beat the crappy old school bus that Kurt was used to—and headed off to Toledo for the competition. Blaine sat with Kurt and the two held hands the entire trip. In order to keep the nervousness at bay, they talked about fashion and movies and classes. Though they were both seniors, they only had two classes together. They had the same teacher in some of their courses, just at different periods.

"Tell me more about your friends," Blaine said when they got closer to Toledo.

Kurt smiled. "Well, we're a pretty eclectic group. I mean, when Mr. Schuster started the glee club it was just the misfits. Rachel has an amazing voice and is very pretty, but she's… a little too ambitious to be normal. Tina was a Goth with a stutter. Artie was a nerd in a wheelchair."

"Double whammy," Blaine said with a wince.

"Yeah," Kurt agreed. "And then there was Mercedes, who has more attitude than Whitney and Beyoncé combined in a school where one can count the number of black people on their fingers. And finally there was me. We were so bad. _Seriously_ bad. Then Finn joined."

"Your step-brother," Blaine clarified.

"The one and only," Kurt said. "Only he wasn't my brother then. He was just the goofy, hot quarterback of the football team. I think Mr. Schue blackmailed him into joining but I've never been able to confirm that. It was rough going at first with just the six of us. Not even enough kids on the team to compete. But eventually, three of the cheerleaders joined, and then three more football players joined. And somehow we all became friends despite our differences."

"Sounds like a TV movie," Blaine said teasingly.

Kurt chuckled. "It does, doesn't it? But I'd never really had any friends before. I was always the weird kid who likes to do girly things… or later the gay kid. But with glee club… The girls all kind of accepted me as one of them. We'd have sleepovers and gossip and talk about the things none of the boys ever wanted to talk about. And the boys… while they are all straight, they figured out that it was okay to hang out with the gay kid. I was even invited to some of their video game marathons and they didn't tease me too much when I spent more time in the kitchen than blowing things up with them. There's always loads of drama, but we all genuinely care about each other."

"They sound like great friends," Blaine said.

Kurt nodded his agreement and then noticed that they were pulling up outside the auditorium. "Just be prepared for the third degree. Especially from Mercedes, Finn, Rachel and Puck."

"Puck?" Blaine had heard about all the others from Kurt at one time or another but not Puck.

"Yeah, he's one of the football players," Kurt said. "You'll recognize him by his Mohawk. Anyway, after he stopped putting me in dumpsters, he decided that no one else should be allowed to do it. He's sort of overprotective in his own weird way. Don't worry too much if he threatens you. He can't actually hurt you or he risks being sent back to juvie."

Those words weren't entirely reassuring to Blaine, but he didn't have much time to worry since they were starting to unload. And as soon as they stepped down from the bus, Kurt was being surrounded by his old team. Blaine was pushed aside as one by one the New Directions greeted and hugged him. All the while, several Warblers were glaring.

"You look so handsome!" Rachel said. "Private school does seem to suit you."

"It doesn't come without difficulties," Kurt said diplomatically. "But it _is_ nice not fearing for my life every day." Kurt pulled back enough to find Blaine standing close by. "Blaine? Come meet everyone." Blaine stepped to Kurt's side and took the offered hand. "Everyone, this is my boyfriend Blaine Anderson. Blaine, this is everyone."

There were squeals from some of the girls and then Kurt was being dragged aside again, and Blaine was left to face the boys. "Um… hi?"

Two of the boys, the two biggest, stepped forward into his personal space. From the descriptions Kurt had given him, Blaine was guessing Finn and Puck. But the others were all right there with them and even the kid in the wheelchair was glaring at him.

"You had best not hurt Kurt, Preppy," Finn said. "If we don't get to you first, then Burt, Kurt's dad will certainly do the job."

"Just keep the princess happy and we won't have any problems, Hobbit," Puck—the only one with a Mohawk—growled.

"Blaine? Kurt?" Wes called out from near the stage door. "We need to get backstage and warm up."

Blaine had never been so grateful for Wes' obsessive need for proper preparation. "Um, Yeah, I guess… Kurt! We need to go!"

Blaine stepped around the boys carefully and went to get Kurt. Soon he was dragging his boyfriend away from his friends—among shouts of good luck and break a leg, and one solitary we're going to kick your butts—and to the safety of their warm up room.

"Please, don't _ever_ leave me alone with them again," Blaine muttered.

Kurt laughed. "They're harmless. It's my dad you have to worry about. But he's not here today—he couldn't find anyone to cover for him at the garage—so relax."

At least the meeting with New Directions had served to calm Kurt's nerves, even if it had the opposite effect on Blaine. A few well timed kisses from Kurt helped tremendously, as did the almost ritualistic warm up that Wes led the group through.

When the time finally came for them to take the stage, both boys were more than ready to face the judges. Blaine opened their set with 'Teenage Dream', then Kurt sang his solo, and finally, they closed with 'Hey Soul Sister'. Overall, it was an amazing performance. Their choreography, while not as intricate as the New Directions', was both lively and in perfect sync. As David always said, it was better to be less complex and perfect than to have the flashiest choreography around and do it sloppily.

Not that New Directions were sloppy, but they weren't perfect. It was pretty clear that their skill levels were quite different from person to person. As they watched from the audience, Blaine also noted that Rachel and Finn seemed to dominate their set list. While Rachel had a lovely voice, there seemed to be others with equally nice voices. They should have kept her on the ballad and let Mercedes or Santana take on the upbeat numbers. As for Finn, his greatest strength was his personality. His voice and dancing definitely left a lot to be desired. Artie, the kid in the wheelchair, had a much better voice, as did the blond kid with the big lips and Puck.

"They would be much better if they played to their strengths," Blaine said to Kurt after it was over and they were waiting for the judges to deliberate. "They have a lot of talent, but focus only on two people."

"Mr. Schue has some weird obsession with Rachel and Finn," Kurt explained. "Especially Finn. None of us understand it."

"Well, Finn is good in duets, but he doesn't really have the strength to carry a song," Blaine said. "And no one could have done that ballad as well as Rachel, but I think Mercedes or the Latina—Santana?—could have done the other songs better. And Puck and the kid in the wheelchair both have great voices from what I could tell. They should be used more."

"From your mouth to Mr. Schue's ears," Kurt said. "Then again, if we beat them, this will be the last competition for a lot of them. About half of them are seniors this year."

Blaine whistled. "That will be tough to come back from. As a rule, the Warblers have never had more than a third of the group in any one class."

"Makes transitions easier," Kurt said. They were holding hands back stage, on the opposite side from the New Directions and waiting to be called on for the announcement of the winners. Kurt waved to some of the New Directions and then turned back to Blaine. "What is taking the judges so long?"

Blaine shrugged. "I have no idea."

Just then, a stage hand called them to take their place on stage. Soon the other two groups were joining them and then the guest judge was standing there and speaking into the microphone. No one was surprised when the unknown team was called for third place. And then the moment of truth came.

"And the winners of the Northwest Ohio sectionals are…The Dalton Academy Warblers!"

Wes and David and all the other Warblers went crazy, but Kurt looked a little sad, so Blaine gave him a hug and then the two of them went over to give their condolences to the other team. Most of them were good sports about the whole thing, but Rachel left the stage in tears and Santana was swearing fluently in Spanish at anyone and everyone.

There was a little time after that to talk some more with Kurt's friends, but they weren't much in the mood for celebrating. They congratulated Kurt and soon headed off to their handicap-accessible bus. Kurt and Blaine walked sedately to their bus and joined the celebrating Warblers.


	3. Chapter 3

**Part Three**

There were only two weeks between sectionals and the Christmas break, but those weeks were filled with papers and projects and studying for finals. While the two boys did most of that together, there really wasn't much time for anything else. Their dates were put on hold until the break. While this would be the first time the two had been apart since getting together just after Thanksgiving, they already had plans to meet up a few times.

So, when the time came for them to say their goodbyes, it wasn't nearly as bad as it might have been. Still, there were a few tears on both sides. In just a few weeks, the two boys had really come to rely on each other for everything. Some might think they were too young to really know their own hearts, but both boys were already thinking in terms of forever.

Of course, if Kurt was thinking in terms of forever, then that meant he needed to prepare his father. He waited until the second day he was home, Christmas Eve, when his father was mellowed out by the single glass of mulled wine that Kurt would allow him, to bring up Blaine.

"I knew this would happen," Burt grumbled. "You go in there convinced you have to meet someone to get that money and of course you fall for the first guy who says hello to you."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "While Blaine _was_ the first boy to actually welcome me to Dalton, and is in fact the first other openly gay boy my age I had ever met, there are plenty of other guys I could have dated. Several of them even asked me out before Blaine and I got together. This isn't about that. It isn't about the money either. I _really_ like him, Dad. I might even love him. I don't know yet. If we _do_ get married, it will be because we both love each other. You have to meet him to understand, but he's just the most perfectly imperfect boy ever created. He's so smart and charming about some things and completely oblivious and dorky about others. And he's so talented."

Burt's grunt did not sound impressed.

"We talk about everything," Kurt continued. "He's quickly become my best friend, but it's more than that. So much more. And no, I'm not talking about sex. I mean, there's love and affection and butterflies when I see him, even if I've just seen him five minutes before."

Burt's face seemed to soften a bit at that and his voice was quiet when he spoke. "It was like that with your mother. Every time I saw her, from the very first day until the day she died, I got those butterflies. I never could understand why she would choose someone like me, but I've been grateful every day that she did."

Kurt gave his father a watery smile. "Blaine and I haven't really talked about if we will get married. We're trying not to rush anything. But at the same time, when I think about the future, there's only one thing that I know for sure, and that's that I want him to be in it."

Burt nodded. "I wanna meet this kid."

"I was hoping you'd say that," Kurt said with a grin. "I invited him over for dinner on the 26th. And I'm hoping you'll let him stay over so we can go shopping on the 27th. You know all the best deals are to be had after Christmas."

Burt sighed. "Fine, but he sleeps in the guest room. No bed hopping."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "If we wanted to bed hop, we could do it at school. But like I said, we're taking our time."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Blaine's first meeting with Burt was tense. Over dinner, Burt grilled him about his family, his friends, and his future plans. All the while, Finn looked on with perverse glee at the boyfriend's discomfort. But when Burt mentioned the results of some bowl game to Finn, Blaine chimed in with his opinion and soon the three were chatting away about football and Ohio State's chances of beating LSU in the bowl game they would be playing later in the week. Kurt and Carole shared a look and got up to clear the table and get dessert.

The next day, Blaine had his first true interactions with Mercedes, Tina and Rachel as the five of them hit the mall together. They seemed to accept him in Kurt's life rather easily, though they were all a little shocked when Blaine challenged Kurt's opinions on fashion. It seemed none of them ever thought to do that. Well, Rachel still defiantly wore her sweaters with animals on them despite Kurt's continued criticism, but none had ever openly confronted him about _his_ clothing choices.

"Kurt, dear, while I do love the way that sweater hugs your hips, don't you think it's just a little… too feminine?" Blaine ventured. "The chest is too full. You'd have to alter it to lay right and then it would lose what makes it so special."

The three girls held their breaths, awaiting the diva-fit to end all diva-fits. But it never came. Kurt stared thoughtfully at his reflection in the mirror before pulling the sweater off. "You're right. If I have to resort to wearing women's clothing to be cutting edge, then I'm just not trying hard enough. Let's go check out the men's department. And then I want to head to the sewing store. They always have all sorts of fun buttons and other accessories. I once found a set of silver skull buttons there."

The girls were stunned, but Blaine just smiled and followed Kurt over to a display of bowties.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Kurt's dinner with the Andersons was not quite as easy as dinner with the Hudson-Hummels. Blaine's parents weren't rude, but it was obvious that they had no idea how to interact with their gay son and his boyfriend; however, Kurt simply put on his best smile and kept the conversation flowing with small talk. When Blaine's parents announced that they had a party to attend, and left soon after, both boys sighed in relief.

"I'm sorry about that," Blaine said wearily.

"Don't be," Kurt told him and then kissed him. "At least they didn't yell homophobic insults or get all snobby when I told them my dad owns a garage. They just… are stuck between what they've always been taught and the reality before them. They're obviously trying. And the only reason they would try is because they love you."

Blaine leaned into Kurt's embrace and nodded his head against Kurt's shoulder. "I know. Even before I came out, they were never the most demonstrative parents. Family dinners were more like business meetings with everyone giving a report on their lives. But the last few years… well, I guess they try and that's all I can really ask."

"Come on," Kurt said as he tugged Blaine's hand. "I want to see your room. You can tell a lot about a person by the way they decorate their private spaces."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The New Year brought Kurt and Blaine back to Dalton, but it also brought another new student to the school and to the Warblers. Sebastian Smythe was everything Kurt hated and apparently Kurt was everything Sebastian hated in return. No sooner had he arrived than he was going out of his way to make life difficult for Kurt. He did it in such subtle ways that there was no way that Kurt could complain without sounding petty and childish. And he never did so around Blaine.

It became pretty obvious to Kurt that Sebastian was after Blaine and he was after Kurt's spot for a solo at regionals. And of course, Blaine was oblivious to the other boy's scheming. He just thought Sebastian wanted to be friends. As endearing as Blaine's obliviousness was at times, this time Kurt really wished he would wake up and smell the stench emanating off of Sebastian.

"There's no way you can hope to keep a guy like Blaine with that unfortunate gay-face," Sebastian hissed at Kurt while the Warblers were watching Blaine work on a new solo for Regionals.

"If you say so," Kurt shrugged mildly, refusing to allow the other boy to get under his skin. Inside he was seething. "Personally, I think it's amusing watching you make a fool of yourself over a boy who barely even knows you're alive. It's actually rather pathetic."

As if to prove Kurt's point, Blaine, who had just finished singing, came over to the two boys with an excited look on his face. "So, Kurt? What did you think?"

"I think it was wonderful, sweetie," Kurt said with a smile. "But you could probably put a little more emotion into the bridge. The whole song sort of culminates in those lines."

Blaine kissed his boyfriend lightly on the lips. "This is why I love you so much. You don't fawn… you just give me your unadulterated opinion. Thanks."

"Personally, I thought your bridge was fine," Sebastian opined, making sure Blaine finally noticed him. "It was carefully understated, which is more compelling than any in-your-face performance could ever be."

Kurt didn't miss Sebastian's underlying meaning, but Blaine did. "No, I think Kurt's right. I'm going to try and give that section a little more emotion."

Blaine went back over to Wes and David to discuss going through the number again, leaving Kurt and Sebastian alone once again.

Kurt smiled at the other boy. "Gee. Looks like you showed me."

With that parting shot, Kurt joined Blaine and the rest of the Warblers.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Once again, Kurt was attempting to come up with an audition song for a solo, this time for regionals. Blaine had helped him the last time, but Kurt was more familiar with the council now and their likes and dislikes. He knew he was more than talented enough to win them over, but the song had to be both fabulous and capable of being arranged for the acapella group. He had learned early on that the Warblers prided themselves on making every number a group number, even if there was a soloist featured.

In the end, he decided on "Untitled" by Simple Plan. Most of the song was in his lower range, but the chorus truly showed off Kurt's versatility. As a bonus, there were great harmonies throughout the song. It was almost a duet, but not quite.

Rather than waiting for the song—and Kurt—to be chosen, Kurt went ahead and worked on the arrangement on his own. The string parts were easily simulated with voices. The only other instrumentation was the piano, and that was a little trickier. The piano kept up a constant counter melody and was very important to the whole orchestration. But the rhythm section of the Warblers would no doubt be able to really do a great job of that since there was no percussion.

Though the lyrics were more angst-filled than Kurt would normally select, he knew that he could totally pull off the emotions in the song. All he needed to do was think back to the days before Blaine, before Dalton. He'd been quite miserable and just barely hanging on. The bullying had gotten to the point that Kurt really didn't know how much longer he could take it. So when he sang, Kurt knew exactly what emotions to draw from.

_Everybody__'__s screaming__; I try to make a sound but no one hears me. I__'__m slipping off the edge, I__'__m hanging by a thread. I wanna start this over again._

_How could this happen to me? I made my mistakes. I__'__ve got nowhere to run. The night goes on, __As I__'__m fading away. I__'__m sick of this life. I just wanna scream: How could this happen to me?_

Kurt ran through the song several times while Blaine was out studying with Wes and David. When he returned, Kurt was running through the song for the seventh time, really feeling like he had a good sense for it.

"That was… amazing," Blaine said when Kurt finished. He was still standing in the doorway between Kurt's room and the sitting room. "When did you… I mean… Wow."

Kurt grinned at his boyfriend before patting the bed beside him. Blaine walked over and sat before leaning in to steal a kiss.

"I think that means you liked it," Kurt said a little smugly. Blaine nodded quickly, which made Kurt's smile to grow. "I did have a question for you. I've only auditioned once and I haven't really seen anyone else audition, so wondered if it's allowable to have two people audition together?"

"Sure," Blaine said with a frown of confusion. "Like a duet. But that song was so totally yours…"

"Not as a duet," Kurt explained before handing the sheet music Kurt had worked on to Blaine. "There are some really strong harmonies on some of the lines that make the song so much more powerful."

Blaine nodded as he read through the song and then finally looked up at Kurt. "You want me to sing with you?"

"If you would," Kurt said. "But if you think I should ask someone else, I will. I mean, this would be good for Nick's voice too."

"No way am I passing up the opportunity to sing with you," Blaine said. "Only if the council insists. But I'm definitely doing the audition with you."

"Good," Kurt said and then latched onto Blaine with a huge hug which then evolved into a rather heated make out session. Eventually, the two boys pulled apart. "Maybe we should take a break."

"Good idea," Blaine panted out. He picked up the sheet music again and hummed. "You realize that if we sing this together, there will be parts where I actually have to sing higher than you."

"I did realize that," Kurt said teasingly. "Think you can handle that?"

"I can handle anything you throw at me," Blaine answered and then went back to kissing his boyfriend. "Break time's over."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

When the council came back and informed them that Kurt had won the ballad solo, Sebastian looked like he was ready to spit nails. To make matters worse, Wes took the new boy aside and explained to him that he was welcome to audition for the transitional number. Since Blaine would be singing with Kurt, even as back up, they felt it only fair to open up the middle number to auditions and then Blaine would close out the performance with "Raise Your Glass." But Wes didn't just offer him the chance to audition; he then went on to explain to Sebastian just what he had done wrong in his audition. From song selection not matching the strengths of the group, to lack of preparation, to his song not complementing his vocal range, Wes gave a complete and honest critique of the boy's performance.

Sebastian stormed from the room in a huff as soon as the rehearsal was dismissed.

"He didn't look very happy," Kurt muttered.

"Who?" Blaine asked.

Kurt rolled his eyes but was pleased that Blaine still didn't pay the other boy any attention. "Sebastian."

"Oh," Blaine shrugged. "Guess he needs to work a little harder. His audition was okay, but his voice isn't the best for singing ballads. Like me, I guess. Plus, he sang a country song and everyone knows that David hates country."

Kurt giggled. "I guess no one shared that information with him."

"Kurt!" David called out from across the room. Kurt turned and saw Wes, David and Thad all waving him over. He and Blaine went to see what they wanted together.

"What's up?" Kurt asked with a smile. "You haven't changed your mind about my song already, have you?"

"Nothing like that," Wes said with an answering smile. "We were actually going to ask you if you could spend some time with David on the choreography for regionals. We'll be going up against Vocal Adrenaline and we need more than swaying or walking in formation to win this."

"Keep in mind that not all of the Warblers can do more than sway and walk," Thad said with a flush. Everyone knew that he was one of those Warblers.

"We can still walk in formation and sway," Kurt said with a grin. "But if we add in a few dips and well-timed shuffle steps… Think _Stomp_-lite… and then let Ryan, Jeff and Nick do a bit of their acrobatics, we can still keep our uniqueness while turning things up a notch."

"Oh," David said enthusiastically. "I think I understand what you mean! But we'll need to really rehearse to get it synchronized."

"Great," Blaine groaned. "More rehearsals."

"Do you want to go to nationals or not?" Wes asked with a frown.

"Of course," Blaine said. "But I also want to pass my senior year and spend some time alone with my boyfriend."

"We'll try to keep things reasonable," David assured. "You aren't the only one with a love life, you know."

"So Pamela finally agreed to go out?" Kurt almost squealed with glee.

David grinned. "She did, thanks to you. You were absolutely right about the flowers."

Thad and Wes both rolled their eyes. "You two can gossip when you meet to go over choreography. Now, we're all going to be late for supper if we don't get a move on."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Rehearsals went forward, as did school and life. The Warblers were excited to incorporate some new moves into their routine. All except for Sebastian, who seemed to make a point of questioning everything that Kurt said. When David would say the same thing, he thought it was the best suggestion in the world. It started to become rather obvious to some people that Sebastian had issues with Kurt, but Blaine remained oblivious.

Kurt and Blaine's relationship, otherwise, was progressing rapidly. They had moved from simple make out sessions to serious petting. At this rate, there was a good chance that they would progress to intercourse by graduation. One part of Kurt couldn't wait for that eventuality. He was really having a difficult time holding back with his hot boyfriend. Another part of him was contemplating waiting until he was married. The longer the two of them were together, the more convinced Kurt was that Blaine was the perfect boy for him.

It was with that in mind that Kurt finally brought up the future to Blaine on one of their dates. They had gone to a rather nice restaurant for dinner and were talking pretty freely.

"Do you ever think about the future?" Kurt asked tentatively.

Blaine grinned. "Like school and career? Or _**our**_ future?"

"Both," Kurt said. "I mean, I know that you want to do something with music…"

"Well, I've applied to a number of good music schools," Blaine said. "But I'm really hoping to get into Juilliard."

Kurt smiled. "That's sounds pretty great. Then what?"

Blaine shrugged. "I'm not sure. Teach, compose, perform… there are a lot of options and I don't really know which way I'll go yet. Or maybe I'll do all three. What about you?"

"Well, I applied to a lot of schools too," Kurt said. "But Columbia would be my first choice and NYU second. I really just want to go to New York. It's what I've always wanted. And I'm not really sure what I want to do, yet, but I've applied for business; though I'm really good with science and languages, too. And fashion, of course. I just don't know what I want to do."

"So we'll go to New York together and figure the details out later," Blaine said with a happy smile as he reached out and clasped Kurt's hand. "I'm so glad."

Kurt smiled back and squeezed Blaine's hand. "So you see us together? I mean, in the future?"

Blaine hesitated. "Until a few months ago, I thought I would go to college, date a few different guys and eventually find one to settle down with. And then I met you and you asked me out and suddenly, I can't picture my future without you in it. I mean, I know we're still young and we have our whole lives in front of us, but…" He shook his head, unable to give voice to his thoughts. "I never really believed that first love could last a lifetime, but now I do."

"I feel the same exact way," Kurt said quietly. "I love you so much and I just can't imagine life without you in it. If you went to school in California, I think I would have to follow."

"Well, hopefully, we won't have to decide where to go, and we'll both get into our schools in New York," Blaine said. "I really want to experience New York with you."

"I want to experience life with you," Kurt said.

Kurt didn't mention marriage then. It was still too soon. He didn't want to scare Blaine away. And the longer the two of them were together, the less Kurt cared about the money that he may or may not get. What mattered was getting this right with Blaine.


	4. Chapter 4

**Part Four**

Kurt wasn't surprised to find out that Sebastian got the second number in the regionals set. The other boy had worked hard and had presented "Say My Name" by Destiny's Child. He sang with Nick and Trent on the lead vocals and the arrangement was quite good. It was a great beat for David and Kurt to choreograph, too. In all, Kurt wasn't unhappy about Sebastian's inclusion in regionals. He just wished the other boy would back off his campaign to get in Blaine's pants and under Kurt's skin.

There was a fine line between harassment and bullying and Sebastian seemed to like to walk that line, never crossing it where anyone could overhear. But the insults and snide comments were becoming more frequent and Kurt could recognize that this escalation was not a good thing. It was this sort of harassment and antipathy that had led to him leaving McKinley and he knew that if Sebastian wasn't stopped, it would only continue to get worse.

It was for this reason that Kurt went to his faculty advisor and reported the harassment. He knew that there was nothing that Mr. Granger could do, but if things got worse, there would be record that Kurt had attempted to bring it to the administration's attention. At Mr. Granger's urging, Kurt began to keep a diary of the harassment, noting each time Sebastian said or did something questionable. Once a week, he would report back to Mr. Granger.

With less than a month left before regionals, tension was mounting in the Warblers. Everyone was feeling the pressure to beat Vocal Adrenaline. This was the same team that had cheated to beat them two years ago and they really wanted to show them up. But as the pressure mounted, the tempers began to flare. And so, in his infinite wisdom, Wes dismissed practice early one afternoon and told everyone to just go and chill out.

Kurt and Blaine made plans to meet in the rose garden to enjoy unseasonably warm March weather while they studied for a while before dinner. Blaine went off to get his books and Kurt headed for the garden alone.

Or he thought he was alone. Instead, he was followed by Sebastian.

"You just don't give up, do you?" Kurt demanded when he realized that Sebastian was there. He carefully opened the voice recorder on his phone and hit record without letting Sebastian see.

"No, I don't," Sebastian said with a smirk. "That's why I always get what I want."

"Well, you didn't get my solo," Kurt said disdainfully. "And you still haven't even registered on Blaine's radar, so you haven't gotten _him_, either."

"I'm not worried," Sebastian said with a smirk. "They'll all realize soon enough what a loser you are. But just to show that there's no hard feelings, I brought you something." Kurt stared in disbelief as Sebastian pulled out a slushie cup and removed the lid. "This is what losers like you get at your old school, right?"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Wow. So you're going to throw a slushie at me? Big deal. But please, go ahead. I'm sure that the administration would be interested in knowing that your verbal assaults have escalated into physical assaults."

"Won't matter," Sebastian shrugged. "My dad's a state's attorney and he has some pretty powerful friends. They won't do shit without proof. And the word of some poor gay-faced loser with a grease monkey for a father won't stand up against mine. And just so you know, this isn't just any old slushie… I added a little something just for you."

With that, Sebastian pulled his arm back to throw the frozen drink.

Neither boy knew that they hadn't actually been alone for the last few minutes. As the red liquid splashed out of the cup, Blaine sprang from the side path where he had been eavesdropping and shoved Kurt aside. Unfortunately, that meant that he took the full brunt of the slushie attack in his face. Almost instantly, he fell to the ground and began to writhe in pain.

Kurt dropped down to Blaine and tried to help him, but there wasn't anything he could do but try and wipe some of the red liquid away and attempt to call for help.

Sebastian stared at Blaine for a long minute before dropping the cup and running.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"What are we going to do?" Wes asked with anxiety as he paced back and forth. The rehearsal room was filled with Warblers who had heard about the incident, hoping news would come before curfew. They were waiting for word on how Blaine was doing and what would happen with Sebastian. "We can't lose two soloists a month before regionals! This isn't happening."

"Wes, calm down," David sighed. "We can figure this out after we hear what's happening with our friend. I for one am more concerned about Blaine than I am about regionals right now. Plus, we don't know for sure what happened or if we'll lose _either_ of the soloists."

Just then, the door opened and a very tired and drained looking Kurt stepped inside. Anyone could tell that he had been crying and there was red dye splashed on his white shirt and blazer.

"So?" Wes demanded.

Kurt swallowed hard and then cleared his throat. "Sebastian decided to throw a slushie at me and Blaine intervened. He got hit in the eye and his cornea was scratched. He has to have phototherapeutic keratectomy surgery on his eye. It's an outpatient procedure, but it will take a few days for him to be up and around and almost three weeks for his eye to fully heal. He's in the hospital tonight because the doctors think he was a little shocky and want to keep an eye on him. Tomorrow he'll go to home and the surgery is the day after."

His voice a little stronger and filled with anger now, Kurt continued his report. "I spoke to Mr. Granger about Sebastian. He's been expelled and the police are conducting a criminal investigation for assault. Sebastian was convinced that no one could touch him because his father's a state's attorney, and maybe he's right. But, this isn't my word against his anymore. I recorded the incident on my phone. He also left the cup and the police have that with his fingerprints all over it and slushie still in the bottom. They also found rock salt in his dorm room. That's what he put into the slushie to make it hurt more and that's what did the damage to Blaine's eye. Plus they have my testimony and Blaine's and the history of harassment that I've been reporting to Mr. Granger. He may not go to jail, but he's definitely going to face the consequences of his actions."

"So we lost one of our soloists," Wes said glumly. "And the other may or may not be able to rehearse before the competition."

"Kurt just said he'll be up and around in a couple days," Thad said with exasperation. "And Sebastian's part can be filled by another Warbler. Or we can use one of our other songs."

"I think Thad would do a great job with that one," Jeff said and several other Warblers agreed.

"Kurt?" Trent said a little timidly. "You're going to go see Blaine? Can you tell him that we're all pulling for him?"

"I'll tell him," Kurt said with a tired smile.

"We should head to the dorms before we're all late for curfew," Thad said. There was a little grumbling, but everyone was quick to head back. They were still subdued, but felt a little better.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

In the end, Kurt brought a whole care package to Blaine when he went to visit after classes the next day. All of the Warblers and several other students insisted on sending Blaine gifts and snacks and cards. Blaine was grateful for their support, but was a little freaked out at the prospect of having surgery on his eye. Kurt decided that he needed to do something to cheer up his boyfriend.

"Well, I brought the mail with me," Kurt said as he leaned against the headboard with Blaine's head resting on his shoulder.

Blaine sat up. "You did? Did… did anything important come?"

Kurt nodded and dug into his messenger bag. He handed Blaine three envelopes and then pulled out four addressed to him as well.

"Juilliard," Blaine said a little breathlessly.

"Open it," Kurt encouraged.

Blaine continued to stare at it for a long minute and then nodded. He tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter. A quick glance over and then he went back to re-read every word.

"It says… I got in," Blaine whispered. "I got in. They loved my audition video and were impressed with my academic record. And I got in."

Kurt hugged his boyfriend hard. "I'm so proud of you."

No longer caring about the other schools, Blaine tossed those letters aside for the time being. "Open yours."

Kurt took a deep breath. "Columbia first." He followed Blaine's example and soon had the letter out. It took him a moment to really comprehend what he was seeing. "I was accepted into their business school, and in the honors program, too."

"Do you know what this means?" Blaine asked excitedly.

"We're going to New York," Kurt said with a huge grin. "Together."

"Together," Blaine agreed and kissed Kurt breathless.

By the time Kurt left to go back to Dalton, Blaine had forgotten his fears.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Kurt went with Blaine and his parents to the hospital the next morning. He couldn't be in the room with Blaine, but he could be there for him after it was over and he wanted to be able to comfort his boyfriend. Sitting in the waiting room with Mr. and Mrs. Anderson, however, was a bit nerve wracking.

"So, Kurt," Mrs. Anderson said after almost an hour of waiting in near silence. "What are your plans for next year?"

"Well, I was accepted into Columbia's business school," Kurt said. "So I'll be going to New York to study. After I graduate, I'm not really sure what I want to do."

"Very impressive," Mrs. Anderson said.

"It's more realistic than Blaine's goals for a music career," Mr. Anderson muttered.

"Have you seen him perform?" Kurt asked. He wasn't trying to be snotty, but his tone did hold some censure because Kurt knew that Mr. Anderson hadn't gone to any of the Warbler performances. "He's amazing to watch. He's extremely talented. And not just as a singer. He writes original music. He plays the piano, violin and guitar with equal aptitude. He's truly gifted. Not just _anyone_ can get into Juilliard, you know. It's easier to be accepted into an Ivy League school."

"Blaine's music teachers always said he had great potential," Mrs. Anderson said diplomatically.

"You should come to regionals," Kurt told them. "Blaine has one of the solos, and you'll get to see him truly shine."

Mr. and Mrs. Anderson shared a look and it was clear to Kurt that Blaine's mother was all for taking the time to support their son. Eventually Mr. Anderson sighed and said, "We'll see."

Just then, the doctor entered the room and told them that the operation went perfectly and that Blaine would be in recovery for an hour before being released to their care. He went over the care instructions with them and told them to schedule follow-up appointments. And then he let them go in to see Blaine.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"We definitely can't do 'Say My Name'," Wes told the assembled Warblers a few days later. Blaine was back at school, wearing a red eye patch—Kurt had insisted on getting him a number of color coordinating options—which had earned him a number of pirate jokes. But everyone was very excited to have him back.

"Why not?" Kurt asked. "I thought Thad was doing great with that one. And we've already got the choreography down."

"Sebastian Smythe transferred to Carmel," Thad told him. "He's joined Vocal Adrenaline. Word is they've added that song to their regionals set list."

"Wait," Blaine said. "Does that mean we have to scrap the rest of our songs too? He knows our entire set list."

"No," Wes said. "We're scheduled to perform second and Vocal Adrenaline is third. If they take our songs, it'll just make _them_ look bad. No, we aren't going to let them rattle us. That's all this is."

"So what are we going to do instead?" Jeff wondered.

Wes, David and Thad exchanged looks before Wes said, "We've been working on an arrangement for 'Misery' that would be perfect. We thought to hold it back in case we made it to nationals, but we can worry about nationals later. We need to get through regionals first."

"Blaine, we'd like you to take the lead on this," Thad said. "Are you okay with that? It will mean more rehearsals than we originally thought and with you still recovering…"

"Of course I'm going to do it," Blaine said. "Sebastian is not going to win."

"May I make a suggestion?" Kurt asked. He got several nods from the council. "I think we're going to need to do something pretty spectacular for the choreography. I know that neither David nor I are qualified to really do any more than we already are. So I was thinking we could ask a friend of mine for a little help."

"A friend?" David asked. "You mean from McKinley?"

Kurt nodded. "They hate Vocal Adrenaline just as much as we do. And they are rooting for us to win."

"Is this the person who choreographed their sectionals performance?" Wes asked. "Because the execution wasn't the greatest, but the moves were very good."

"Yes," Kurt said. "Mike Chang is a great dancer and choreographer. Unfortunately, most of the New Directions don't have dancing skills to match his talents. But since they aren't competing, he might agree to help us out."

"Ask him," David said. "We can use all the help we can get."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"I'm so sorry," Mike said to Kurt the minute he walked through the door to Dalton. A moment later, Kurt understood why he was apologizing. Half of the New Directions followed him into the building.

"Kurt!" Rachel and Mercedes both squealed before attaching themselves to Kurt's neck.

"I just knew that you boys would need my assistance," Rachel told him.

"Rachel, we just need help with the dancing," Kurt said wearily. "You really didn't have to come. _Really_."

"Hi Kurtie," Brittany said shyly before Kurt gave her a hug.

"Hey Britt," Kurt said with a smile. "You're going to help Mike with the choreography?"

She nodded. "And San. She said you found another dolphin. Is that true?"

Kurt grinned. "I'll introduce you to him. Hey Blaine!" Blaine, who had been observing the reunion, joined Kurt. "Blaine I want you to meet Brittany. Britt, this is my boyfriend Blaine."

Though Blaine had met most of the New Directions at sectionals, he smiled at the blond girl and didn't run away when she gave him a big hug.

"I remember you! You're the cute dolphin from sectionals," Brittany said. "Take care of Kurt. He's got baby hands."

Not really sure what she was talking about, Blaine simply smiled and said, "Okay."

The whole group soon moved into the rehearsal room and the insanity began. Mike worked with David and Kurt to separate the good dancers from the okay dancers—no one was nearly as bad as Finn or even Puck and they didn't have to account for a wheelchair, so that was a bonus—and then set about coming up with a routine that would highlight their strong dancers without making the weaker ones look out of place. The New Directions, who were used to Mike's moves, worked with different groups on their routines until it was pretty obvious that everyone had at least a basic understanding of their role.

"You guys should practice this a couple times this week just to keep it fresh in your minds," Mike told them just before they were scheduled to finish. "There are two more weekends before regionals, so I'll plan on coming down to work with you on Saturdays. I also want to see what you've put together for your other numbers, see if there's any way to spice it up a bit."

"We don't know how to thank you," Wes told him sincerely.

Mike shrugged. "We hate Vocal Adrenaline. Beat them and that's thanks enough. Besides, I'd do it for Kurt anyway, just because he asked. We all would."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The rest of the weekend rehearsals went great. Mike did make a few suggestions for the other songs, but didn't change them enough to throw anyone off. He simply gave Jeff and Nick a bit more freedom to show off their skills. Each time Mike came, others came with him. Brittany was always there with Santana, but the others changed up. Kurt nearly laughed when Puck showed up on the last Saturday before regionals wearing a blue blazer that he obviously thought would help him blend in—never mind that his hair made him stand out—but he'd ripped the sleeves off to show off his "guns."

The only person from McKinley's glee team that hadn't come to help was Finn. Before the group left that day, Kurt took Puck aside and asked him about it.

"Dude, he's like totally working at the garage every day," Puck said. "Said your dad needs the help."

Kurt frowned. Not once had anyone said anything about his dad needing help at the garage when he went home every month. "Why does dad need help?"

Puck shrugged. "Gotta ask him that. Or Finn. He promised to be there for regionals. We all will. We all want to see you guys kick Vocal Adrenaline's ass."

"We'll do our best," Kurt promised.

"Well you guys look about as perfect as you sound now, so I think it should be a breeze," Puck said. "By the way, how's the hobbit treating you?"

Kurt grinned. "He's the best boyfriend I could have hoped for. You know, he took a slushie for me? That's how he got hurt. He really is a wonderful boyfriend, so I think you and Finn and the rest of the guys can stop trying to intimidate him now."

"Sure thing, Princess," Puck smirked. "Next time you come home, bring him and we'll do a video game night or something."


	5. Chapter 5

**Part Five**

Despite his concern over what was going on at home, Kurt didn't have time to really worry too much about it that week. The Warblers spent every day after classes practicing to make sure that everything was perfect. On top of that, they still had homework to get through. Kurt and Blaine didn't even get to fit in a coffee date that week.

But the morning of regionals came around and everyone piled into the coach bus. Soon they were pulling up to the auditorium in Columbus. They were greeted by the New Directions as soon as they stepped off the bus. They didn't have time for more than greetings and good-lucks before Wes insisted that they go start their warm-up.

They watched the first group perform from backstage, and weren't impressed. They had obviously not had much competition in their section, because they were out of tune and hopelessly clumsy. One of their soloists actually knocked another member off the stage and into the orchestra pit.

"Oh my Gaga," Kurt laughed nervously. "That's totally going to be me."

Blaine laughed. "You aren't going to knock anyone off the stage. But you will knock the socks off the entire audience."

Kurt rolled his eyes but then kissed Blaine for his sweet words. "Have your parents shown up yet?"

Blaine nodded happily. "I saw them walk in just before the lights went down. I wanted to thank you. I don't know what you said to get my father here, but I…"

"I love you," Kurt told his boyfriend. "And I just told him that he was missing out on a great performer."

"I love you too," Blaine said and then kissed Kurt a little deeper than before.

Before they could get too involved, however, Wes and David came over to break them up. "None of that, boys."

David smirked, "We can't have our two soloists walk on stage looking like they just got finished ravishing each other."

"Save it for your suite tonight," Wes agreed.

Blaine saluted smartly and said, "Yes, sir!"

"Alright everyone, circle up!" David called.

Soon all the Warblers were gathered in a tight circle. Wes looked around the group and smiled. "We've worked our asses off to be the best that we can be. Now let's go show the judges and Vocal Adrenaline what the Warblers can do!"

They waited for the other group to leave the stage and ignored their grumbling at each other, before going on and taking their places for their first number. "Misery" went perfectly. And when they came to the "Why do you do what you do to me" part, they all sang in unison and their dance was in complete unison as they stomped the beat out with their feet and hands. And then they went back to their various parts and finished the song. They received a standing ovation for that song and had plenty of time to get into place for the second song.

Kurt was a little nervous taking his place out in front of the rest of the Warblers for his solo, but he knew that Blaine was just behind him to the right. There was no major choreography for this number since it was too slow. And then the Warblers began the softly vocalized introduction and Kurt automatically began to sing when his cue came. Then Blaine joined in for a few lines before Kurt took the first chorus alone. They harmonized through most of the second verse and Kurt was amazed once again at just how perfectly their voices blended. When they got to the instrumental bridge, the Warblers began to shift, moving down the risers and surrounding Kurt and Blaine as they prepared for the final chorus. When the last notes of the song faded out, the audience sat in silence for an extended moment of awe before erupting into another standing ovation.

Blaine made Kurt take an extra bow before he allowed him to step back into formation for the final song. Blaine began "Raise Your Glass" with all the vivacity and energy in him and the Warblers fed from that energy as they went through their dance routine. What had once been simple steps were now completely synchronized dance moves that had them jamming to the heavy back beat provided by the rhythm section. And during the final chorus, Ryan, Jeff and Nick broke out the big guns and slowly the entire group began to devolve into controlled chaos before finishing with a series of steps and kicks in complete sync.

They froze in place as the song ended and the audience erupted into their third standing ovation. This time, the applause lasted a lot longer. The Warblers bowed in unison and accepted the praise graciously before leaving the stage, only to run into Vocal Adrenaline backstage. Right in the middle was Sebastian.

"Well if it isn't gay-face," Sebastian snarled at Kurt.

"You smell like Craig's List, Sebastian." Kurt smiled and then let Blaine lead him away. Of course, the other Warblers glared at Sebastian as they passed as well.

"Forget about him," Blaine said.

"Let's go out and watch," Kurt said. "I want to see Sebastian flop."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Vocal Adrenaline was good. Anyone who saw them perform would have to admit that, but they had no soul. In that way, Sebastian fit right in. But when the time came for the performance of "Say My Name," it soon became obvious that there was something lacking. Sebastian was the only one with any emotion. It wasn't a bad performance, but it was flat and cold. As usual, their dance routines were flawless, like they had a full troupe of professional dancers onstage, but it didn't change the fact that there was no passion in their performance.

As soon as they finished performing, there was a half hour break while the judges deliberated. Kurt and Blaine went over to greet the Andersons first.

"Oh Blaine honey!" Mrs. Anderson gushed. "You were so brilliant! I never knew you were that talented! And Kurt, dear, you were wonderful, too! You made me cry."

"Thanks mom," Blaine said and accepted her hug.

"Thank you Mrs. Anderson," Kurt said with a smile.

Blaine turned to his father and Mr. Anderson gave him a small smile. "You really were very good, son." He awkwardly patted Blaine on the shoulder. "I'm very proud of you."

"Thanks, dad," Blaine said with a grin.

"Now, I'm sure you have friends waiting to congratulate you both," Mrs. Anderson said. "Go see them. But I hope you'll both come over for brunch tomorrow. We'd love to celebrate your win."

"We'd love to," Kurt said for them. "But we haven't won yet."

"You will," Mr. Anderson said with certainty.

Blaine gave his parents one last hug and then let Kurt lead him over to where the New Directions and Warblers were gathered by the snack stand in the lobby. They were soon surrounded by their friends who gushed over their performances. When he got a chance, however, Kurt dragged Finn off to the side.

"What's going on with Dad," Kurt demanded. "Puck said that you've been helping at the garage every day since football let out?"

Finn's face sort of dropped as he sighed. "He didn't want to worry you."

"Well, too late," Kurt said. "What's going on?"

"Business has been really bad lately," Finn said. "He's had to lay off a couple of the guys. And there's something to do with taxes… I don't know everything. But I know that things aren't great. Mom's been working more shifts and Burt and I have been keeping the garage open. But I overheard our folks talking and I think he's close to losing the garage."

Kurt sat down heavily on a bench and looked up at Finn. "He can't lose the garage. It would kill him."

"Now would be a good time to get that money from your grandparents," Finn said pragmatically. "You think Blaine would marry you?"

Kurt blinked at his step-brother and sighed. "I don't know."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The groups were called back on stage for the awards ceremony. Blaine held Kurt's hand, but Kurt's mind wasn't on the competition. It was on his conversation with Finn. Blaine squeezed Kurt's hand and the other boy finally looked over at him.

"You okay?" Blaine asked with concern.

"Not really," Kurt said. "But now's not the time."

Blaine nodded and squeezed Kurt's hand again. "We'll talk later."

And then the emcee was on the stage and they were all holding their breaths until: "And the winners are… The Dalton Academy Warblers!"

After that, things were a blur of hugs and cheers and congratulations. It wasn't until they were back on the bus and heading back to Dalton that Kurt really had a moment to breathe and think. And Blaine was right there beside him, still looking a little concerned, but unwilling to press the issue on a bus full of boys.

It wasn't until they were back in their suite that Kurt spoke. "I'm just going to change out this uniform and then… I guess we need to talk."

Kurt closed the door to his room behind him and quickly stripped off his Dalton uniform before pulling out his favorite pair of lounge pants and a silk t-shirt. He wanted to feel comfortable for this conversation and Blaine had seen him at his worst since they had been sharing a suite. It took him a few minutes to work up the nerve to go back out to their shared sitting room, but he found Blaine already sitting on the sofa when he did. The other boy was wearing a pair of Dalton sweats and a plain white t-shirt. He looked comfortable if a little nervous. It was obvious that he thought that Kurt had something bad to tell him.

Kurt sighed and sat down close to Blaine. He took his boyfriend's hand and then looked into his eyes. "There's something that I need to explain to you and then I can tell you what upset me today."

Blaine nodded. "Okay."

"I told you that my grandparents left me a trust fund," Kurt said. "And that's true, but it's only part of the story. See, they were estranged from my mother because they didn't want her to marry my father. But when I was born, they sort of worked through some of that. But then my mom died when I was five and they were grieving and moved away. They only ever sent cards and checks for my birthday and holidays. Generous checks, but it didn't make up for them not being there."

"I can totally understand that," Blaine said. "My dad's parents are the same way since I came out."

"Well, I was still their only grandchild, so when they died, they left me everything," Kurt said. "But with a stipulation. You see, they didn't want me to marry someone they would consider beneath me, like my mother did, so they stipulated that I could only access the full inheritance if I was married, otherwise it would just be the trust fund. And the person I married had to be from a certain social and economic class."

"So, you only have your trust fund," Blaine said. "Just like you said."

"Which can only be used for my educational costs and living expenses," Kurt said. "I knew things were getting bad for my dad financially, and I knew that getting that inheritance would be a huge help, so I decided to come to Dalton. It was partly because of the bullying and partly because I thought I'd be more likely to meet someone who met their requirements. But I… It was only to increase the chances of meeting someone, it wasn't… I didn't ask you out for that reason."

Blaine gave Kurt an understanding smile and squeezed his hand. "I know that. You're a romantic at heart. I knew that the first day we met."

Kurt huffed a laugh. "Only you would think that's a good thing."

"A very good thing," Blaine said. "I love how you look and act so practical and pragmatic, but underneath, you are romantic and optimistic."

"Well, I'm glad you like that part of me," Kurt said. His face fell, though, when he recalled the reason for this conversation. "Finn told me today that my dad's going to lose his garage. Something about taxes and slow business… I don't know all of it. But he can't lose the garage, Blaine. It would kill him, possibly literally. He's already got a bad heart and he's been working too hard since he laid-off half his staff, but losing the garage would be… I can't let that happen."

Blaine was quiet and pensive as he pulled a tearful Kurt into his arms. He soothed the other boy, stroking his back until the tears stopped, but he was also thinking about everything that Kurt had told him. When Kurt looked up again, Blaine gave him a tissue to wipe his face.

"So what you're saying is that you need to get married," Blaine said calmly. "And sooner rather than later."

Kurt blew his nose into the tissue and then nodded. "This is really not the way I wanted this to happen. I thought we'd be in New York already and one of us would plan something completely cheesy and romantic for the other."

Blaine finally grinned. "Go get dressed."

Kurt looked at his boyfriend in confusion. "What?"

"It's early still," Blaine said. "And we haven't eaten since the snack bar at the auditorium, which hardly counts as lunch. Go get dressed up because I'm taking you out to dinner at a nice restaurant."

Kurt was still confused at how the conversation had changed so rapidly, but he didn't argue. Instead, he went back into his room to find something to wear to a nice restaurant.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The restaurant wasn't one that the couple had been to before, but it was very nice. Blaine was able to get a last minute reservation for them, so they were seated soon after arriving. Their table was secluded and the flowers and candlelight gave a romantic air. Their talk was easy and yet there was a small feeling of uncertainty between them after their earlier conversation that neither could dismiss.

It was over dessert, a shared slice of tiramisu and cappuccinos, that Blaine did the completely cheesy and cliché thing by getting down on one knee and pulling out a ring box.

"Kurt Hummel," Blaine said, completely ignoring Kurt's spluttered scolding about getting his pants dirty. "I love you. I love everything about you. And I've known for months now that I want to spend the rest on my life with you. I think maybe this is a little sooner than either of us planned, but it doesn't change anything, at least nothing of importance. You are the man I want to grow old with. So, Kurt, will you do me the extreme honor of marrying me?"

Kurt bit his bottom lip and held back a hysterical laugh as Blaine opened the ring box and displayed his Dalton class ring. Not bad for a last minute proposal. Leave it to his perfect boyfriend to come up with the best way to show him that he was loved. "Yes. Yes, Blaine Anderson. I will marry you. Now get up off the floor before you ruin your pants and make an even bigger fool of yourself."

Then there was scattered applause from some of the diners around them—they ignored the dirty looks of others—as Blaine got up and kissed Kurt soundly before going back to his own seat to finish off dessert. He was wearing a very sappy grin on his face.

"If I'd had a little more time to prepare, I would have serenaded you with an awesome song," Blaine said regretfully.

"You are crazy," Kurt told him.

"But you love my crazy," Blaine said.

Kurt sighed happily. "Yes. Yes, I do."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"So you're sure that there's no stipulation that says you have to marry a girl?" Blaine asked as the two drove towards his parents' house the next morning.

"Positive," Kurt said. "It was the first thing I checked with the lawyer. It just has to be a legal marriage in one of the fifty states. So we'd need to go somewhere other than Ohio to do it."

"Well, we'll be in New York for nationals in just over a month," Blaine said. "Gay marriage is legal there."

"Finn said that my dad and Carole were bringing him to see me compete, even if they had to shut down the garage for a few days to do it," Kurt said. "And all of the Warblers will be there."

"We can ask my parents if they'll come," Blaine said. "My mother always loves an excuse to shop in New York. And maybe some of your friends from McKinley would be able to come too."

"Mercedes would have to be there," Kurt said. "Because I want her and Finn to be my witnesses."

"And I'll ask David and Wes," Blaine said. He paused for a minute or two. "So we're really doing this? We're going to get married in New York while we're there for nationals?"

"Yeah," Kurt said a little breathlessly. "I guess we are."

"Wow."

"Yeah."

"We should go to see your family after we leave here," Blaine said. "Tell them the good news."

"You realize that everyone is going to try to talk us out of it," Kurt said quietly. "Including my dad."

"I know," Blaine said. "But I also know that this is right for us. Not just because of the money. It's right because it's _us_. I love you _so_ much, Kurt. And I know that whether we do it now or three years from now, or even ten years from now, you are the man I'm going to marry and spend the rest of my life with."

Kurt gave Blaine a bright smile. "Me too."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Brunch with the Andersons went very well until Blaine decided that the time was right to tell them about their plans to get married.

"We'd really like for you to come," Blaine said into the stunned silence. "We're planning it for the week we're in New York for nationals. It's legal there, and since we'll be living there after we graduate, it seemed like the perfect place to do it."

"Married?" Mrs. Anderson finally gasped out. "But you're too young! You can't possibly know…"

"We do know, Mom," Blaine said firmly. "We know that most people who get married this young don't last, but we also know that we _will_. We love each other and we're going to make it work."

"How will you support yourselves," Mr. Anderson asked. "If you're married, you can't expect your parents to continue to support you."

"Actually," Kurt said a little nervously. "Part of the reason we aren't waiting to get married is because when I marry I'll receive a rather substantial inheritance from my grandparents. We'll be able to get by just fine from that."

"Kurt's family really needs the money right now," Blaine said. "And like I said, we already know that we're going to spend the rest of our lives together, so why wait?"

"How much money are we talking about here?" Mr. Anderson asked. "I'm not sure that either of you have a realistic idea of what it costs to live in a city like New York, never mind tuition fees for college."

"Dad…" Blaine said warningly. He hadn't even asked Kurt that question.

"No, it's okay," Kurt said calmly. "My grandparents were Gerald and Hilda Gentry."

"Gentry… as in Gentry Industries?" Mr. Anderson asked.

"That's the one," Kurt said. "I was their only grandchild, the son of their only child. When I marry, I'll inherit everything but the few bequests they left to various charities."

"That has to be in the billions," Mr. Anderson murmured pensively.

"$28.8 billion," Kurt agreed. "Give or take."

"Jesus, Kurt," Blaine muttered. "You didn't tell me it was so much!"

"Does it matter?" Kurt asked. "I mean, it's not like we could ever spend it all. And it's not like I'm not still going to college and getting a job. No one really knows who I am, and I'm not going to go around bragging about having money. As far as I'm concerned, it only matters because it gives us options."

"You'll want a prenuptial agreement," Mr. Anderson said, his legal background coming to the forefront. His tone conveying that Kurt's money certainly changed his feelings about them getting married.

"No," Kurt said firmly. "I don't want to start my marriage off waiting for it to end. As far as I'm concerned, we're never getting divorced. And if, Gaga forbid, it does happen somewhere down the line, Blaine can take half. It's just money."

"That is a very foolish attitude," Mr. Anderson said.

"But it's my money to be foolish with," Kurt said defiantly. "I do hope you and Mrs. Anderson will come to the wedding."

"Of course we'll be there," Mrs. Anderson said. "We already bought tickets and made reservations to see you compete."

Blaine hugged his mother and said, "Thanks mom."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **Hey. So sorry for not posting yesterday. I had unexpected family obligations and couldn't get to my computer all day. I try not to miss posting everyday, so I'm just as disappointed in myself as you probably are in me. Anyway, here's the next part. I hope you all enjoy it! Jules

**Part Six**

They made it to the Hummel-Hudson residence just as Burt and Finn were getting back from closing the shop that afternoon. Though they were surprised to see the two boys, they quickly got over that and invited them to stay for dinner.

"So, what brings you two to Lima?" Carole asked once they were all seated at the table for dinner. "We weren't expecting a visit until next weekend."

Blaine and Kurt exchanged a look before Kurt answered her question. "Blaine and I are getting married."

Their announcement was met with a very long silence.

Finally, Finn grinned at Kurt. "Congratulations, man."

"Thanks," Kurt said quietly before looking at his father. "Well?"

"You know you don't have to do this," Burt said calmly.

"I know," Kurt said. "I want to. And so does Blaine. We love each other Dad. We'd be getting married anyway."

"Just not this soon," Burt said knowingly. "Kurt…"

"I'm doing this Dad," Kurt said with a quiet finality. "I want you to be happy for me. I want you to trust that I know what I'm doing."

Burt looked down at his plate for a very long moment and then sighed before looking back up at his son. "I do trust you. And… and if Blaine makes you happy then I guess I can't really argue against it. But I want to know that you're both doing this for the right reasons."

"I love him, Mr. Hummel," Blaine said. "And before anything ever came up about the money, I knew we'd spend our lives together. I knew it in my heart. Like Kurt said, the only thing the money has changed is how soon we got to this point."

Burt nodded and gave a sad smile to the two boys. "I guess, then, you've got my blessing. Not that it matters. Kurt would do this even without it. He's stubborn like that."

"I come by it naturally," Kurt teased his father.

And just like that, the tension was broken and soon Carole and Kurt were discussing the details of the wedding and Blaine was discussing baseball with Finn and Burt.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The weeks leading up to nationals were hectic in so many ways.

Planning a wedding from three states away was not an easy feat, but Kurt refused to be deterred. After speaking with the lawyers handling the estate, he found out that there was a stipulation in the will that funds could be released to pay for the wedding. Considering the fact that Kurt and Blaine were only having about thirty people at their wedding, $500,000 was more than generous enough to cover their costs. So Kurt hired a wedding planner he found recommended in a wedding magazine. He spent hours on the phone with her, but their wedding was quickly coming together.

The plan was to apply for their license the first day they got into town, and then they would pick it up after the three day waiting period. That way, they would be prepared for the wedding which was scheduled the evening of the finals. If they made it that far, the competition was scheduled to be over by one and the wedding would be at four.

In the meantime, they still had to prepare for nationals. There wasn't a lot of time to spend on auditions and song selection, so David, Wes and Thad handed out assignments this time. They were doing a Beatles tribute. Blaine would do their closing number, "Revolution," Nick and Jeff would do their opening number, "I've Just Seen a Face," and Kurt would do the ballad in the middle, "If I Fell." Once again Mike agreed to come help them with choreography. He said it was because he had so much fun helping them the last time, but in truth they all knew it was because New Directions really wanted Kurt to win if they couldn't.

Kurt had gotten used to ignoring his friends' questions about why he would want to get married so young. He had also gotten used to trying to sneak in a few minutes alone with Blaine between homework, wedding plans, and rehearsals.

"Just think," Blaine told him after a particularly stressful day when they had barely seen each other. "In a few weeks, this will all be over, we'll have graduated, and we can go on our honeymoon: a whole month with no one to answer to but ourselves."

"Sounds perfect," Kurt said tiredly. He was leaning against Blaine on the sofa in their sitting room while they both tried to get ahead of the work they would miss while in New York. "Blaine…"

"Yes," Blaine said sweetly.

"I was wondering," Kurt said. "I mean, I know we talked about waiting until we got married to… you know. But I was thinking, we really aren't going to have a lot of time or privacy when we get back from New York."

"You want to wait until our honeymoon?" Blaine guessed.

"Would you mind?" Kurt asked. "I just think since it will be the first time for both of us, that maybe it should be really special."

"I'm happy with what we do now," Blaine said as he sat up a bit to look directly into Kurt's eyes. "We can wait ten years, if you need to. There's no rush."

Kurt sat up as well and gave Blaine a skeptical look. "I have no intention of waiting ten years, you goofball."

"Thank god," Blaine said with exaggerate relief and then collapsed back on the sofa.

"So, are you going to tell me what you have planned for our honeymoon yet?" Kurt asked as he snuggled back into Blaine's side. They had agreed that since Kurt was doing most of the panning for their wedding, Blaine would plan the honeymoon. But he was being infuriatingly reticent about sharing any details other than the fact that they would spend part of it in Paris and London. The reason for those locations was so that they would have time to see the properties they owned there. And because both boys had always wanted to go.

"Nope," Blaine said. "Our itinerary is going to be a surprise. But I know that you'll love it."

"I had better," Kurt pouted. "After all this teasing, I'm expecting something absolutely fabulous."

"It will exceed all your wildest dreams," Blaine said. "I hope."

They went back to studying again for a few minutes, before Kurt thought of something that he wanted to tell Blaine that their wedding planner had told him that day. "Janelle said that the band she had booked for the reception backed out."

Blaine frowned. "Why are we hiring a band at all? I mean, between New Directions and the Warblers, we'll have plenty of music if we just set up a karaoke machine."

Kurt opened his mouth to object to that, but then tilted his head. "Actually, that's not a bad idea. And it will keep Rachel from criticizing the band all night."

"So she is coming?" Blaine asked with a tiny wince. She was nice enough and tried to be helpful, but she was hard to take in large doses.

"They're all coming," Kurt said. "Even Mr. Schuster, Miss Pillsbury, Coach Beiste and Coach Sylvester are coming. Though I'm not really sure why Sue agreed to come. She hates weddings… and people… and parties… and well pretty much everything but winning competitions. I think it helps that I used a chunk of the wedding money to pay for flights and hotels for everyone. I don't think many of the McKinley kids would have been able to afford to come otherwise."

"Do they realize that you paid their way?" Blaine asked.

"Yes and no," Kurt shrugged. "I haven't told any of them about the inheritance. Finn knows and it's practically a miracle that he hasn't spilled the beans yet, but he hasn't. I think they assume that the money either came from my trust fund or from your parents… or both."

"Are you going to tell them?" Blaine asked.

"Maybe that there's a little more money than they assume, but not about who my grandparents were," Kurt said. "At least not yet. It's not that I think they'll get weird about it, but because the more people who know, the more likely it is that other people will eventually find out. And like I said, I don't want to live our lives being watched just because we have money. The lawyers have explained that there have been some enquiries from the press since my grandparents died, but they were vague and implied that the money was left to charities. My name was never mentioned and I prefer it that way."

"Hey, you have no objections from me," Blaine said. "I'd rather not be like the Kardashians or Paris Hilton."

"One of the estate lawyers is going to meet us while we're in New York so we can sign the paperwork as soon as the marriage is finalized," Kurt said. "I know we're supposed to fly back with everyone on Sunday, but I think we're going to have to stay and fly back on Monday morning."

"I guess that will be okay," Blaine said. "Will we get to see the New York apartment while we're there?"

"I was thinking we could meet the lawyer there on Sunday," Kurt said. "I'd like to know if it will work for us or if we should sell it and get a place that will suit us better. Though I googled the address and it is in a pretty great location, right on the park and not far from Juilliard."

"You know, sometimes I feel like we're just two kids playing pretend," Blaine said. "Cooper and I used to imagine what we would do if we ever won the lottery. I can tell you, our imaginations didn't even compare to this reality."

"That reminds me," Kurt said. "Cooper sent back his RSVP with a plus one. I have no idea who he's bringing, but he will be there."

"Wow," Blaine said. "I really wasn't expecting that. But I'm glad."

"Me too," Kurt said and gave his fiancé a brief kiss.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The Warblers flew to New York together and Kurt was more excited than he could verbalize. They were not only going to nationals, but he and Blaine would be married in six days. Their flight landed at JFK at 11 in the morning and Kurt and Blaine broke off from the rest of the group to catch a cab to city records building. They had to file their application for the wedding license. Then, on Thursday, they would be able to pick it up after their morning performance. They were scheduled to perform on the third day of the first rounds. If they made it through the first round, they would perform again on Friday afternoon. And then the final three teams would perform on Saturday morning. Each of the rounds had a different set of judges, so they wouldn't have to worry about changing up their routine to present something new each time.

There was a line at the records office, but it moved quickly and soon their application had been filed. They took another cab to the hotel, holding hands and smiling goofily at each other the entire way.

They called up to Wes, who had checked them in, to get the key to their room when they arrived.

"So, everything go okay?" Wes asked when he met them in the lobby.

"Perfectly," Kurt told him.

"That's great," Wes said with a smile. "Your luggage was delivered to your room. And we've booked an empty conference room on the third floor for the week so we'll have a place to rehearse. We're meeting there in an hour. We'll go through the whole set a few times and then head out for dinner."

"Uniforms?" Blaine asked. They had been required by school tradition to wear their uniforms for the trip, but there was leeway now that they had arrived.

"Mr. Granger said we're good to go without," Wes said. "We won't be required to wear them again until Thursday. Unless something comes up of a formal nature."

"Good," Kurt said. "I can't wait to show off some new outfits."

"Let's go unpack," Blaine said. "And then you can pick out one of those new outfits to impress your fiancé."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Tuesday and Wednesday went by in a blur of sightseeing and rehearsals. There was hardly time to breathe, but Kurt was glad to be able to fall into bed with Blaine each night, even if they were both too exhausted to do anything but sleep. Kurt kept in contact with Janelle about the last minute wedding details when they were en route between sights or on breaks from rehearsing. According to her, the wedding was going to be perfect.

And then the day of their performance dawned and Wes insisted on one last rehearsal before they headed to the auditorium. Since they were performing at 11, that meant that they had to be up extra early to get in the practice. There was some grumbling as the Warblers showed up at 7 in the morning, but they went through the routine flawlessly and Wes was satisfied that they were as ready as they were going to be.

The auditorium where they were holding the competition was only a few blocks away, so the group walked there together. Outside, they were greeted by their families and the New Directions, all of whom had flown in the night before. They were wished luck and hugged by numerous people before having to get backstage.

After that, the time seemed to fly by and before anyone knew it, they were taking their places on stage and the curtain was rising. Nick and Jeff totally rocked "I've Just Seen a Face" and used the up-tempo and lighthearted music to highlight their dancing talent as well. They, along with Mike, had taken a lot of inspiration for the choreography from the movie _Across the Universe_. With them taking turns on the fast-tempo lyrics and fancy footwork, the song was a huge success.

Then it was Kurt's turn to shine. Once again, the choreography was simple for the slow song, but it gave Kurt a real opportunity to show off his vocals.

Finally, Blaine took center stage with "Revolution." Kurt still marveled at how Wes and Thad had been able to arrange the rocking song for acapella without losing any of the intensity or emotion. And Blaine was really able to play up the passion in the lyrics while in its inspiration. One would almost think that the Warblers were from a military school and part of an elite drill team.

When Blaine finished, the auditorium went crazy. They had received ovations for each of their performances, but this time the crowd simply couldn't be silenced. They took their normal bows, but the audience still clapped. Eventually, the emcee had to shoo them off the stage so that he could announce the next school.

They all went out to lunch afterwards with their families and friends—many of the other Warblers had family there as well—and made it back to the auditorium in time for the announcement of the top ten. Only the top ten would go on to the second round.

"I can't look," Wes cringed as they walked up to the leader board.

David, who was dragging his friend along smiled. "Fine, I'll look for you and let you know."

"No!" Wes screamed and then opened his eyes to see the board right in front of him. "Oh."

Blaine was right there, Kurt by his side. "We made it to the semi-finals."

"In third place so far," Wes said with a frown as they all moved off to the side to let other groups see the results. "Maybe we should rethink our set list."

"No!" The voices of every Warbler drowned him out.

"We are not going to second guess ourselves," Thad told their leader. "We've prepared these songs for over a month. We are not going to do any better by changing at the last minute."

"I think we could probably improve a little though," Kurt said thoughtfully. He noticed that several of the boys were looking at him in horror. "I'm sorry, I know we all did very well, but I was thinking while we performed and I believe that if we upped the tempo of Nick and Jeff's song a little and slowed mine down just a bit, they would both be better."

"Actually, that's not a bad idea," Thad said slowly. "It wouldn't mean any significant changes, but we would need to run through each of them a few times."

"We should head back to the hotel and work on that," Wes decided.

"Not right this second," Blaine said. "Kurt and I have an appointment to pick up our marriage license."

The three council members rolled their eyes, obviously feeling that their wedding plans should not come before nationals in the two boys' minds.

"We'll be back after dinner," Kurt said. "We can run through the songs then. And tomorrow morning."

"Fine," Wes huffed. "Be in the rehearsal room by 7."

"We'll be there," Blaine promised before taking Kurt's hand and leading him out to catch a cab.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

When they performed Friday evening, the changes that Kurt had suggested proved to be very good. Though it took some work for Jeff and Nick to be able to keep up with the faster tempo, they did splendidly and their dancing looked even more amazing as a result. And Kurt's slower solo number gave him the chance to really put some real emotion into the relatively simple tune. The result was that their ranking moved from third place to first place after the second round. They were officially the team to beat for the finals.

After that, everyone went to dinner together. It was unofficially Kurt and Blaine's rehearsal dinner, though they didn't actually have a rehearsal for the wedding. Janelle rented out the upper room at a restaurant and all of the Warblers, New Directions, and Kurt and Blaine's families had come. Cooper had even arrived from California that day along with a blond woman that looked like she had an IQ lower than a brick's.

There were toasts and good food and embarrassing stories from some of their friends. Eventually, however, Wes and Mr. Granger declared that the team needed to head back to the hotel; they had to be at the auditorium early the next morning for the finals. They broke up for the evening, but not before Rachel took Blaine and Kurt aside to tell them how much better the arrangements were on that day than on Thursday. She also gave them a few suggestions on how to really sell their performances the next day.

Rather than rolling his eyes at her as he normally would have, Kurt thanked her for her advice. He knew that they could use every advantage they could get to impress the judges. Though they had placed high in the first two rounds, there was no guarantee that the celebrity judges invited to score the finals would feel the same way the other judges had. They really needed to go all out.

And that is exactly what they did. It was as if every Warbler had been holding something back in the first two rounds, because when they took the stage on Saturday morning, it was like someone had lit a fire under them. Every single person gave the performances everything they had. They lifted their feet a little higher on each dance step. They sang with more emotion, even the rhythm section. Nick and Jeff were covered in sweat after their high-energy performance. Kurt sang his solo as if he were singing to Blaine in the first days after they met and drew tears from the audience, including the judges. And Blaine's performance was better than any other he had ever given, and that was saying a lot.

Since they were the last group to perform, there wasn't much of a wait between their performance and the final awards ceremony. Standing up on the stage again, looking out over the audience as they cheered for all three teams, Kurt couldn't help but think that no matter what the result, this was a perfect day so far.

"We're getting married today," Kurt whispered to Blaine as the emcee went through some spiel about all of the groups who had come to New York deserving recognition.

"I know," Blaine said with a smile. "I can't wait."

"I'm so happy right now that I don't think I could be upset if we don't win," Kurt said.

"And now, for the 2012 National Show Choir MVP Trophy presentation," the emcee said. He introduced one of the celebrity judges, an MTV personality, who was to award the MVP trophy.

"While the other judges and I placed a strong significance on the value of teamwork in scoring the performances, some voices stood out above the others," the celebrity said. "It was a difficult decision to make, since there were several great soloists in today's competition, but we finally agreed that one voice was so moving that it made me and the other judges cry… along with half the audience. For his rendition of "If I Fell", we are pleased to award the MVP trophy to Kurt Hummel from the Dalton Academy Warblers."

Kurt stood frozen in place for a long moment. Surely there must be some mistake. He could not have heard the man correctly. But then Blaine was nudging him forward.

"Go on, Kurt," Blaine said with a huge grin. "You deserve that award."

Kurt looked at Blaine and took a deep breath before stepping forward to receive the award. He gave the judge a wide smile and then shook his hand. He was asked to pause for a photo, and then he went back to his place beside Blaine.

"That was…" Kurt shook his head, still feeling dazed. "Surreal."

"And now, for the award you've all been waiting for," the judge said. "In third place, the Fall River High School High Notes."

There was applause for the team while they accepted the third place trophy. Then they stepped back and let the other two teams await the outcome.

"And the winner of the 2012 National Show Choir Competition is… The Dalton Academy Warblers!"

The Warblers, usually so well behaved in public, lost their minds as they whooped and hollered. Kurt and Blaine hugged like they never wanted to let go of each other, but then the other Warblers joined in and it became one massive group hug. Only Wes maintained his composure and broke away from the madness long enough to receive the trophy and over-sized award check. Then he was back and Kurt saw that the boy had tears running down his cheeks.

"We did it," Wes said as though stunned that the trophy in his hand was real.

"We did it," Blaine agreed and then pulled Wes back into the group hug.


	7. Chapter 7

**Part Seven**

Kurt paced the hotel room nervously. For the first time—possibly in his entire life—Kurt was ready ahead of schedule, which left him time to fret. He stopped to check that his tuxedo was perfect in the mirror before returning to his pacing.

"Settle down, kiddo," Burt Hummel said from his spot on the small armchair in the room. He was flipping through TV channels and attempting to keep from wrinkling his trousers. Kurt would have a fit if his pants were creased. As he watched Kurt do another lap, he sighed and turned off the TV before approaching Kurt. "Everything is going to be fine."

"Fine isn't good enough," Kurt muttered. "It has to be perfect. I should have insisted that Janelle email me photos of everything before approving. What if she's color blind? What if she got the green-leaf instead of the silver-leaf for the centerpieces? And Blaine! What if he changes his mind?"

"That boy isn't going to change his mind," Burt said with amusement. "He's so in love with you it's not even funny."

Kurt finally stopped pacing and smiled at his father. "He really does love me, doesn't he?"

"He does," Burt agreed. "I know that a lot of people have probably given you lectures about getting married young, but I want you to know that any reservations I had in the beginning weren't because of your age. Your mom and I were your age when we got hitched. And I truly believe that if she hadn't been taken from us, we would have still been together today. I know that you can find real love, the kind that lasts a lifetime, even at 18. And I believe that you and Blaine have found that kind of love."

Kurt swallowed back tears and he hugged his father. "Thanks dad. You don't know how much that means to me."

"I think I might," Burt said and scratched the back of his head for a moment. "Now listen, as long as you have Blaine, the rest of the details are just that…details. They don't matter. So if the tablecloths are orange and green and the flowers are purple and red, it won't matter."

Kurt groaned. "Oh great Gaga, now I have that horrific image in my head." But his tension drained away and he smiled at his father. "But I understand what you're saying and you're right."

Burt nodded with satisfaction. "Good. So no more freaking out on me?"

"Only if the tablecloths actually are orange and green and the flowers actually are purple and red," Kurt teased. "Because, really dad, that would be a travesty to all things good and fashionable. Christian Dior would roll over in his grave."

"One more thing before we go get into that car you hired," Burt said as he pulled his son into another hug. "I want you to know how proud I am of you. Not just for winning today, though that was pretty spectacular. But because you've… you've really turned into one hell of a man."

"If I am, it's because of you," Kurt said as he hugged his father in return. "You are the best father I could have ever hoped to get."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The wedding was being held on a rented yacht that would take them on a cruise around Manhattan. As soon as Kurt stepped onto the boat, he knew that everything would be just perfect. The small café tables, set up around a small dance floor, were exactly as he had pictured them in his mind. The silver, black and cream color scheme he had chosen was elegant, and the boat was lit by candles on the tables and white fairy lights draped everywhere.

He and Burt headed to one of the small sitting rooms inside while their guests began arriving. He knew that Blaine was already ensconced in the other parlor with his father and Cooper. Carole and Mrs. Anderson were greeting their guests. Eventually, the boat left the docks and Kurt knew that it was time for the ceremony to begin.

Kurt and Burt walked out to the main room and Kurt took his place on the small stage there where Mercedes and Finn were waiting. A moment later, Blaine and his father entered and Blaine took his place next to Wes and David. The officiant stood before them with a smile. She wasn't affiliated with any church or religion. Instead, Janelle had found a Justice of the Peace to perform their wedding. They decided to stick with simple and traditional vows, but that did not make the words any less meaningful to the two men standing in front of their friends and family. In fact, it probably meant more to Kurt, knowing that millions of couples before them had uttered the same words—that Burt and Elizabeth Hummel had said those words to each other.

When the ceremony finished, and Kurt and Blaine had shared their first kiss as a married couple, they turned back towards their friends and family only to be greeted with applause…and a few cat calls and wolf whistles.

The newly married couple went to each table to greet their friends, rather than trying to deal with a receiving line. All the while, the photographer took pictures and the videographer recorded everything. Music played from the sound system, handled by a DJ, while the wait staff began serving dinner. There was champagne for the adults and a lot of sparkling cider for the many teens. Then the toasts began, and Kurt wasn't very surprised when his father got teary eyed when it was his turn to speak.

Finally, the DJ announced that they would be having karaoke after the first dance. There was a rush of teens to his booth before he even finished speaking.

Kurt and Blaine decided that for their first dance, they wanted Mr. Schuster to sing. So as they took to the floor, the strains of "It Had to Be You" began to play. It was a slower arrangement than traditional, but that made it even better in Kurt's opinion as he led Blaine in their first dance. It was a beautiful moment that Kurt knew he would always cherish.

The New Directions decided to sing together for the next song as Kurt and Blaine invited their mothers to join them on the dance floor. Kurt knew that it meant a lot to Carole that Kurt had asked her. And when he whispered, "I asked because you are my mom," she cried.

After that, the party really got going. Everyone took a turn at the microphone. Blaine sang "Teenage Dream" at Kurt's insistence. Kurt sang "In My Life". And when they weren't singing, everyone danced. The cake was cut and most of the teenage boys on board made a mad rush for the dessert table, leaving the girls to roll their eyes before going for their own slice of cake or one of the dozens of other small treats that were offered.

Kurt wasn't too surprised when Coach Sylvester took him and Blaine aside at one point and said, "You seemed to pick an okay one, Porcelain, even if he is a little too dapper to be human. And you, Curly-Sue! You hurt Porcelain, here and I'll make sure no one finds the body."

Blaine blinked at the woman. He had been warned, but nothing can really prepare you for the reality of Sue Sylvester. "Yes, ma'am. No ma'am. I mean, I won't ma'am."

"See that you don't," Sue said before heading back to the table to torture Will and Emma some more.

The boat finally returned to the docks at midnight and the party was officially over. Kurt and Blaine had gotten a room at another hotel for the last two nights they would be in New York, so when they climbed into the hired car, they said their goodbyes to everyone. Everyone else would be flying out the next day.

They ignored the teasing remarks about starting the honeymoon in favor of waving to everyone as they drove away.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"I'm just glad that you scheduled this meeting for later in the morning," Blaine said the next day as they took a cab to the address on 5th Avenue where they were to meet with the lawyer. Despite deciding to wait until their honeymoon to deal with losing their respective virginities, there was plenty that the two boys could and did get up to that kept them up very late.

"I rather enjoyed sleeping in and sharing brunch in bed with my husband," Kurt said with a smile as he took Blaine's hand.

"Here we are," the cabby said and Kurt and Blaine both looked out the window at the large structure outside.

"This can't be right," Kurt murmured. "This isn't a building of condos. It looks like a private residence."

"This is the address you gave me," the cabby insisted and Kurt shrugged and paid the man.

Once out on the sidewalk, Kurt and Blaine both looked up at the four story stone edifice. "Kurt, this is a mansion. This is a mansion on Central Park."

Kurt took a deep breath. "I noticed."

They went up to the door and rang the bell. It was answered in seconds by a man in a butler's uniform. "Mr. Hummel? Mr. Anderson? Mr. Jacobs is awaiting you in the drawing room."

They followed the butler through the huge marble foyer and into a room that was almost as large as Kurt's entire house in Lima. There was a man looking through paperwork on one of the two sofas arranged near the fireplace. He was much younger than Kurt had expected, probably not even thirty yet. And he was good looking as well. Definitely not the same lawyer who had come out to meet with him and Burt last fall.

After exchanging pleasantries with the man and accepting his congratulations on their marriage, he got down to business. He had Kurt sign what seemed like a thousand forms as he explained each part of the vast inheritance that was now his.

"Now, all of your portfolio investments are currently being handled by Gardner and Rosenstern," Ari Jacobs told them. "You are welcome to either move some or all of those investments to another firm, but I will tell you that they have an excellent reputation for handling large accounts such as yours and your family has been one of their clients since they were founded in 1905."

"No, they'll be fine I'm sure," Kurt said a little breathlessly.

"Alright then," Ari said. "The way your portfolio is set up currently, you will receive a quarterly disbursement to cover your everyday expenses with the rest of the dividends being directed back into your investment accounts. Any major purchases that cannot be covered by those quarterly disbursements can be made simply by requesting a transfer of funds at least one week before the scheduled disbursement. If it's too large for that, then you'll need to discuss liquidating some assets with your account manager.

"Aside from your various real estate investments, you currently own four private residential properties with the expenses that accompany the care and maintenance for those residences. I would suggest hiring a financial manager, especially if you wish to keep them all. I can recommend one or two."

"That would be very helpful," Blaine told him.

"I understand that you will be making the move to New York for college soon," Ari said. "If you would like to make this your primary residence, you'll likely need to hire more staff. Currently there is only the butler and two maids."

"What if we wanted to sell," Kurt said. "Honestly, I'd thought we could keep a lower profile than this… mansion would allow. Living here would be like wearing a neon sign around my neck declaring to the world that I'm the heir to billions. We really don't want that kind of notoriety. Then again, this place is absolutely amazing."

Ari looked sympathetic. "I can understand your concerns. It's the reason we at the law firm have attempted to keep your name out of the press. If anyone wants to really dig up the information, it is public record, but they would have to work to find out that you were the sole heir to the Gentry fortune."

"So, how do we go about selling this mansion, if that's what we decide to do?" Kurt asked. "And how much is this place worth, anyway?"

"At last appraisal, roughly ten years ago, it was valued at just over $40 million," Ari said. "It will have appreciated a bit since then, but not much in this economy. And if you are interested in selling, I will certainly speak to Jane Goodwin. She handles real estate law for the firm, and more specifically, she currently handles your real estate investments. Assuming, that is, that you wish to retain the services of our firm."

"You're the only lawyers we know," Kurt said. "Would you… I mean, I don't even know what we need a lawyer for, but… could _you_ be our lawyer?"

"If you would like, I will be your personal lawyer," Ari agreed with a smile. "Believe it or not, with as much money as you have, you'll probably need the services of the rest of the firm more than you think." And then Ari smirked teasingly. "And having you as a client will certainly boost my popularity with the senior partners. The only reason they allowed me, a lowly junior partner, to handle this meeting is because none of them wanted to give up their weekend plans."

"And what about your plans?" Blaine asked.

Ari shrugged. "My partner Chad is away doing a show in Milan. He's a designer."

"Wait… you don't mean Chad Gordon?" Kurt almost squealed. "I love his designs! His fall line last year was the best I've ever seen! And you're wearing one of his spring suits!"

Ari chuckled. "We have an agreement, I wear whatever he tells me and he doesn't nag me about how much time I spend watching Dirty Jobs."

"Oh, I definitely have to meet this man," Kurt said. "If I wasn't convinced to keep you as our lawyer before, now I'm certain we've made the right decision."

"We'll all go for dinner after you make the move," Ari promised. "Now, back to business. Have you considered if you want to sell the other properties?"

"Well, we were hoping to see the houses in Paris and London while we're on our honeymoon this summer," Blaine said. "But we'll probably want to sell."

"And we'll likely want to sell the Ohio property," Kurt said. "I'd like to see it, find out if they kept anything of my mother's but… well, I really don't want to live there."

"I agree," Blaine said. "Once we come to New York, it will be for good."

"Alright, then, I'll have Jane start getting both properties ready to list," Ari said. "Now, I've given you the bank information for your accounts here in New York. In that same folder are the credit and debit cards connected to those accounts. I had them put cards in each of your names, but if either or both of you are considering changing your name, we can get them changed."

"We considered it," Blaine said. "But I think we're happy with our own last names for now. If we decide to raise children, we may re-evaluate. But that won't happen until after we graduate from college."

"And possibly from graduate school," Kurt said.

"We'll continue to handle your trust fund," Ari said. "It wasn't connected to your inheritance at all, so it won't be released to you until you are 25. But you can still send all educational expenses to me. Blaine's educational expenses will have to come from other funds. Again, a good reason to hire a financial manager."

"We will," Blaine assured. "In fact, can you just hire whoever you think is best?"

Ari nodded. "Okay. And just so you know, as your lawyer, I will be checking up on whoever we hire, just to make sure that they aren't stealing from you. I know a lot of people have heard horror stories, but we'll keep an eye on things. And I suggest that you review your accounts at least monthly if not weekly with whomever we hire."

"I'd like to do something right away," Kurt said. "And I don't know if it's something you can handle."

"Tell me and I'll let you know," Ari said with a reassuring smile.

"My dad won't agree to take money outright, but I know he's feeling the pinch from the current economy," Kurt said carefully. "I'd like to pay off some things for him: the mortgage on the house, the mortgage on the garage, some hospital bills and the back taxes he owes on the business. Can we do that without going through him?"

Ari nodded. "As long as you can get me the account numbers, there's no reason we can't. Most debt collectors, the government included, don't care where they get money from as long as they are paid."

"Good," Kurt said with relief and pulled out at piece of paper. "I got the information from my step-mother, including account numbers and how much is owed. I'd also like to pay my step-brother's college costs. He's starting at Ohio State this fall."

"Well, if he'll agree to send the bills to you, you can handle that the same way you are handling Blaine's expenses," Ari suggested. "Unless you think he'll refuse?"

"No, Finn would agree," Kurt said. "But I'm not sure that he'll remember to send bills."

"Well, the other option would be to set up an account in his name and deposit funds when he needs it," Ari said.

"I'm not sure if that would be better or worse," Kurt sighed.

"We'll discuss it with Finn and Carole," Blaine said. "There's time."

"Well then," Ari said. "Last item of business for today. I received all the bills for the wedding and have paid them out of the account that is now in your name. If any other bills come in, however, it's up to you to take care of them until we get you a financial manager."

"Not a problem," Kurt said as he looked at the paperwork from the bank accounts Ari had given him earlier. "I think there's more than enough money in here to cover anything that may come up."

"And remember, your next quarterly disbursement will come in three weeks," Ari said with a grin.


	8. Chapter 8

**Part Eight**

"Let's go use these new cards," Kurt said after they were back on the street. It was still relatively early and they had lots of time before the shops closed. "We're only a few blocks from the shopping district."

"Let's go," Blaine said with a smile.

They walked south on Fifth Avenue until they reached the end of the park and the beginning of the shopping. Blaine insisted on stopping at Toys R Us, and they bought a few small items for the Warblers and one Harry Potter wand made from real holly wood for Blaine.

Next was Tiffany's, where Kurt found a beautiful bracelet for Mercedes to thank her for being in the wedding. Blaine then insisted on getting cuff links for Wes and David. Kurt considered getting Finn something there, but decided he'd do something else for him. Finn was not a jewelry guy and wouldn't know what to do with cufflinks if he got them.

Then it was on to Brooks Brothers. Luckily, they only had two hours before the store closed or else Kurt and Blaine would have bought out the store. But they did find a couple really nice outfits to wear that evening. They had tickets to go see _Wicked_ that night, followed by reservations at a rather nice restaurant—just like their imagined first date.

They caught a cab back to the hotel, changed and then headed back out. It was a perfect evening for the newlyweds.

It wasn't until they were sharing dessert at the restaurant later that evening that they really talked about everything that they had learned at their meeting with Ari.

"I still can't believe that his partner is Chad Gordon," Kurt said.

"I still can't believe that house," Blaine said. "I can't imagine living there. It would be like living in a museum with all those antiques and victorian wallpaper. I think that sofa we were sitting on was a Chippendale!" They had taken a few minutes to look around, but the place was just too much for them as it was.

"I was thinking, if you take away the antique furnishings and heavy draperies, the house itself isn't so bad," Kurt said. "It's just across the park from Columbus Circle and Juilliard, and the neighborhood is really nice. It's right on the park, and close to the shopping district. It might be a bit of a commute for me, but other than that, it's a perfect location."

"And an easy commute for me," Blaine said. "I wouldn't object to that. But I thought you wanted to be in Chelsea; it is the center of the gay community."

"But most areas of Manhattan are pretty open," Kurt said. "And I don't think either of us is really going to want to spend a lot of time in the clubs, do you?"

"No. We'll have to find an interior decorator who can work miracles if we're going to live there," Blaine said. "That place really needs an update. But I did love the rooftop garden right off of the master suite. We could have brunch there on weekends, looking out over the park."

"Yeah," Kurt agreed. "This all seems so surreal to me."

"I know what you mean," Blaine said. "I mean, I know it's your money, but…"

"It's our money," Kurt said. "I'm not sure I would be able to cope with all this without you."

Blaine smiled and took Kurt's hand. "Well, we'll deal with anything that comes up together."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Once back in Ohio, Kurt and Blaine spent most of that week trying to catch up from their missed classes. Even having worked hard to get ahead before leaving, it seemed like there was a lot that they missed. That weekend, however, they took off Saturday to go to the house outside of Lima.

They were met, once again, by the house staff, this time the caretaker. Unlike the house in New York, this one had obviously been sitting empty for a very long time. All of the furniture was covered with white cloths and there was a fine layer of dust over everything.

"Since your grandparents moved away, I mostly just make sure nothing gets stolen and that the pipes don't burst," Greg, the caretaker, told them. "I hire in a crew to scrub the place twice a year and make sure the landscaping gets done. And I oversee the stable rentals. For the past fifteen years, we've been renting out the stables to a horse club. They use the stables and the back portion of the estate for riding. It's a nonprofit group that brings handicapped kids out for lessons."

"We should donate the stables and property to them," Kurt told Blaine. "Or at the very least, stop charging them. I like the idea of helping kids experience things they wouldn't get to otherwise."

"If we got rid of some of these antiques, this house wouldn't make a bad bed and breakfast," Blaine said. "Not that I want to run such a place. But it wouldn't be a bad investment. There's plenty of room and the pool and gardens would draw people. And then we'd have someplace comfortable to come when we visit our families. This place is about half way between my folks and yours."

"We'll talk it over with Ari and Jane," Kurt said. "There might be some issues we haven't thought about."

"Well, if you do decide to make it a B&B, I know of the perfect person to run it," Greg told them with a grin.

"Really?" Blaine asked.

Greg nodded. "My wife's a chef. But she's been working in restaurants for twenty years and is getting kinda tired of the long hours. She's been talking about opening up a B&B for years; we just can't afford to buy anything nice enough to entice visitors."

"We'll definitely keep that in mind," Kurt said with a smile.

"Thank you kindly," Greg said. "Now you said over the phone that you were looking for stuff that might have belonged to your mother?"

With that, Greg led them up the stairs to a room that had obviously once belonged to a teenage girl. It was obvious that nothing had really been touched since his mother moved out. He and Blaine spent more than an hour just looking through everything and putting a few items into a box to take with them. His mother's high school yearbook, her photo albums, her hope chest… Then Greg took them to the attic where they found boxes of items from her childhood, including medals and ribbons from horse-riding competitions. There were pictures of a young girl who looked a lot like Kurt on the back of a chestnut pony. There were even baby clothes. Though Kurt was glad to see that his grandparents had loved their daughter enough to save these things, he didn't keep much other than the photos and a couple of the medals.

After that, Greg showed them to the library where Hilda Gentry had kept the family photo albums. They found one that was devoted entirely to Kurt.

"You were very cute," Blaine said as he looked at a photo of Kurt at three.

"I was chubby," Kurt griped and turned the page.

"You were a cute chubby three year-old," Blaine said and kissed his husband.

Greg showed them a few other items that he thought they might be interested in, like the art deco china in the pantry. Actually, there were four full sets of china. Only the black with white trim art deco dishes were of any interest to Kurt, however. He did find a really nice set of glassware, however, that would go perfectly with the china. He told Greg to have those items boxed up and they would have them shipped to New York.

They walked through each of the rooms and found a few other decorative items and paintings that they loved and added them to the list of things to be shipped.

"What about the cars?" Greg asked.

"Cars?" Blaine said.

"Well, there's the estate truck," Greg said. "I use that to get around this place. But there's three cars sitting in the garage, too. I've made sure they stay in running order."

"We'll take a look," Kurt said and they went out through the mudroom to the portico which led to the garage. "Oh my Gaga. That's a 65 Corvette Stingray convertible. In mint condition." He went over and popped the hood. "My father would love this car."

The other two cars weren't nearly as exciting. The 2002 Ford Explorer was in great condition, having been bought only months before the Gentrys left the country. And the 2000 Cadillac Seville had obviously been meticulously maintained even when still in use.

"Explorer for Finn and the Caddy for Carole?" Blaine suggested. Both of them were currently driving vehicles more than fifteen years old and in a lot worse shape.

"And if dad wants the Corvette, it's his," Kurt agreed.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The last weeks of school went quickly if for no other reason than there was just so much work to be done. There were projects and papers and then finals. On top of that, the Warblers were requested to do several performances for alumni and at other school functions because of their win at nationals.

On top of schoolwork, the two boys hired a designer to begin refurbishing the house on 5th Avenue. Jonas used photos and floor plans to help them picture the space as he asked their opinions on colors and room designations. He hired in a contractor who was willing and able to completely refurbish the bathrooms, kitchen, and several of the rooms. He sent them pictures of samples for them to choose fabrics and colors. With every choice they made, they felt more confident in Jonas' ability to give them the perfect home.

Burt took the car. Not because it was a classic corvette, but because it had been Elizabeth's car. It was the car the two of them drove when they were dating. It was the car that she had used to sneak out of her parents' house to meet with the boy of whom her parents didn't approve. It was a car with a lot of good memories and he had tears in his eyes when he accepted the keys from Kurt. Finn and Carole had also been grateful for the cars that Kurt and Blaine had offered them.

When they discussed Kurt paying for Finn's education, both Carole and Burt had initially objected but Kurt, Blaine and Finn had finally talked them around. Carole understood Kurt's concerns over letting Finn deal with the bills, so she volunteered to act as intermediary, since most schools sent the bills to the parents anyway. She would simply forward them to Glenda as they came in. Unknown to Carole or Burt, however, Kurt also arranged for Finn to get a credit card with the bills coming directly to Glenda.

"I swear to Gaga, Finn," Kurt told his step-brother warningly. "If you spend more than fifty dollars a month on alcohol, I will cancel the card and tell Carole. Use it for food and anything else you need. Use it to get home to visit. Use it for emergencies. Use it to pay for tutoring if you need help with school. Use it for airfare to visit Rachel or Blaine and me or even Puck. Do not use it to get trashed every night."

"Dude!" Finn cried with some hurt and some guilt. "I'm not gonna get trashed all the time!"

"Alright, in that case, there's a $1000 limit," Kurt said. "Use it if you need it. And if something happens and you need more money, let me know."

"Thanks, bro," Finn said quietly.

Kurt shrugged. "We're family. We take care of each other."

A few days after that conversation, Finn called Kurt to warn him. "Your dad found out that you paid off his mortgage."

"Which one?" Kurt asked.

"Which one?" Finn said in disbelief. "He said the house. You paid off the garage too?"

"And the hospital bills and the back taxes," Kurt told his brother.

"He's pissed already," Finn said.

"He can be pissed," Kurt told him. "It won't change anything."

Their call was interrupted by Burt calling, so Kurt said goodbye and faced the music.

"Kurt Elijah Hummel!" Burt scolded and Kurt knew he was in trouble by the use of his middle name.

"I'm sorry dad," Kurt said. "I'm sorry if you're upset, but I don't regret paying your bills. You always taught me that family takes care of each other. When Uncle Leo almost lost his house, what did you do?"

Kurt could hear his father sigh over the phone. "I loaned him the money. But it was a loan."

"Would you have been mad or upset if he hadn't paid you back?" Kurt asked.

"No," Burt conceded.

"Dad, I have all this money," Kurt said. "More than I think you realize. More than I can comprehend sometimes. I have a lawyer and a financial manager and an investment firm to handle everything because there's just _so much_ money. What I paid out is less than a tenth of the _spending_ money they deposit in my account four times a year. Think of a grain of sand on the beach and you'll start to get a picture."

Burt chuckled wryly. "I get it, kid. You're rich."

"Beyond rich," Kurt argued. "The house in New York alone is estimated to be worth $48 million. If I want to do something for you, something to help you out when things are tight, I'm going to do it and I won't apologize. I know that your pride won't let you accept charity, but this isn't charity. You're my father and this is family."

"I got you kid," Burt said, finally accepting that Kurt wasn't going to back down. "You said bills. As in more than one?"

"Well," Kurt hesitated. "Yeah. Both mortgages, the taxes and the hospital bills."

"You're lucky you're an hour away," Burt said gruffly.

Kurt laughed. "You'd never hit me. You never once spanked me in my life. You aren't going to start now."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Eventually, all the drama died down and Kurt was able to concentrate on finals. He and Blaine both did very well, graduating in the top ten in their class. And on the day of their graduation, both families came out to support them. Finn even brought Rachel, whom he was once again dating, despite the fact that she would be going off to New York to study at NYADA.

"We'll have so much fun!" Rachel gushed. "We'll all be in the city together! We can go to museums and shows and have dinner together! And you can come to all my recitals and shows!"

"Not if we don't give you our number," Blaine muttered only loud enough for Kurt to hear. His husband snorted with amusement before agreeing to set up a dinner date once she got in to town. Blaine pinched him in the arm. Hard.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Their trip to Paris and London was everything that either boy could have dreamed. Other than spending one day in each city going through their houses, everything was all about being together and seeing all of the sites that Kurt had often dreamed of. They made love for the first time in Paris with candles lighting their hotel suite. They also spent plenty of time shopping the Paris fashions and Blaine even planned four days in Milan before they headed to London. Again, London offered plenty of fashion for Kurt. But it also offered the opportunity to see some shows that hadn't yet made it to Broadway.

Going through the two houses, the couple found more items that they decided to keep, but the large and ornate homes were not comfortable to them and they decided to sell. It was pretty obvious that the Paris house was where his grandparents had spent most of their time in recent years, but even so, it was almost as cold and unwelcoming as the other properties.

"We could consider buying condos in either city," Kurt said after they left the London house.

"Or we could wait and explore the world," Blaine said. "And in a few years, maybe we'll decide we want a vacation home on the French Riviera. Or maybe we'll like Greece. Who knows?"

"I have no desire to live on the beach," Kurt said. "The sun is not my friend. But I do want to see the ruins in Greece."

"We'll see it all," Blaine vowed.

When they got back from their honeymoon, they went straight to New York. Because of the long flight and the change in time zones, they were absolutely exhausted, but they wanted to see their home now that it had been updated into the current century. The decorator met them as they stepped from the cab in front of their house. Like many of the residential buildings on 5th Avenue, their house was built around the turn of the 20th century and the architecture was art deco. Unlike most of the buildings around it, this one was made from pink limestone which made it truly stand out, especially after it had been sandblasted to pristine condition.

"Mr. Hummel and Mr. Anderson," Jonas said with a smile as he greeted them. "It's so good to finally meet face to face."

After the greeting, they went inside and Blaine and Kurt were introduced again to the butler, Jarvis, and the two maids, Nina and Patty. Finally, Jonas led them on a tour of the house. They had seen photos and video of the space as it was refurbished, but they were both really excited to finally see it completed in person. When they stepped out of the foyer and into the main sitting room, Kurt grabbed Blaine's hand and held on tight.

As they went from room to room, Kurt and Blaine were like kids in a candy store—or Kurt in a half-off sale at Brooks Brothers—as they oohed and aahed over everything. Jonas had done a wonderful job of incorporating all of the decorative items and furniture that they had shipped from the various houses. Everything was simple, elegant and generally contemporary or modern, with touches of Art Deco, unlike the overly ornate decor that Kurt's grandparents had favored. And the blending of art deco designs and architectural details with more modern touches was perfect for the couple and the house.

On the first floor there was a formal dining room where the art deco china was on display. Off the formal parlor, where they had met with Ari that first day, there was a library filled with shelves already half filled with books and a music room which had a baby grand piano at the center. They also had a billiards room, complete with a sitting area where Jonas had set up a space for video games that Blaine adored.

On the second floor, there were three of the six guest suites. There was also a media room and a study. The third floor was comprised of the other three guest suites, a workout room and a private office.

The master suite, located on the fourth floor, had a sitting room and bedroom both with views of the park through the French doors to the large rooftop garden. There was a bathroom that could rival any spa and two huge walk in closets.

The kitchen, located on the basement level, was absolutely huge and was filled with restaurant grade equipment. Down there were the staff quarters, along with a utility room, and a storage room.

There was an elevator, in case one didn't want to climb four set of stairs at the end of a long day. All of the bedrooms, the parlor, the billiard room, the office, the library and the family room each had gas fireplaces that had obviously been traditional fireplaces once upon a time. And to the back of the house was the old carriage house, which had long ago been converted into a long and narrow garage that could actually hold three cars lined bumper to bumper and opened out onto the side street.

Their favorite part of the entire house, however, was the large rooftop garden that overlooked the park. It was filled with flowers and potted shrubs. The garden could be accessed from the master bedroom or by a spiral set of stairs in the private office on the floor below. Jonas had set up a café table out there, along with several comfortable seating areas, including one around a gas fire table.

"It's perfect," Kurt declared.

"The movers delivered your personal items from Ohio two days ago," Jonas said. "Also, the items you shipped from Europe arrived and have been put away."

"We can't thank you enough," Blaine said with a smile. "You were really able to capture just the feel that we wanted for our home."

After Jonas left them, Kurt said, "We should really add a bonus into his check. He really went above and beyond to get this finished so quickly."

"Just let Glenda know," Blaine said. "Now we have to consider hiring more help. This place is huge and there's no way the two maids and butler can do everything themselves."

"Glenda already has appointments set up for us," Kurt told his husband. "She called an agency and they're sending over several candidates tomorrow."

"In that case, I vote we eat dinner and go to bed early," Blaine said. "It may only be six o'clock here, but it's midnight in London."

"So, too tired for sex tonight?" Kurt pouted. "Married less than two months and already the passion has faded."

Blaine gave Kurt a wicked smile. "Hey, I never said we had to go to sleep the minute we hit the sheets. I just suggested we go to bed early."


	9. Chapter 9

**Part Nine**

Selecting a cook and a housekeeper, who would live with them in the two of the three empty suites in the staff quarters, proved to be rather difficult. They didn't want anyone too old who would try to mother them. And they didn't want anyone too young, who might be more interested in going to parties than working. They wanted a housekeeper who could oversee the maids and manage the household and a cook who could provide decent meals.

In the end, they selected a man to be the cook. He was in his early forties, gay, and a chef who had quit his job working at a small local bistro because of his health. He was funny and intelligent and could cook amazing dishes that were both healthy and delicious.

The woman they hired as housekeeper reminded them both of Carole, only with a thick New York accent. She was amazing at motivating the maids. the only thing Michelle couldn't do was take care of the plants in their garden, but they weren't too concerned. The butler had done fine with the plants up to that point and had fewer responsibilities with Michelle in residence. If it became a problem, they could hire a gardening service for the rooftop garden.

They spent three weeks in New York just getting used to the feel of living there. There was a different pace to life in the city. And their neighborhood was loaded with things to do. They walked through Central Park to see the zoo. One day, Blaine convinced Kurt to visit the Natural History Museum. They walked to the Opera at Lincoln Center one evening. Since Juilliard was right next to Lincoln Center, they spent an afternoon exploring the small campus.

Their explorations went further afield as well. They took the subway uptown to Columbia and explored the campus. They took a cab down to Chelsea to check out the gay community there. They went to see _Anything Goes_ one evening. And they had dinner with Ari and Chad wherein Kurt was able to keep his fan-boy glee in check—barely.

But eventually, they decided that it was time to head back to Ohio. They had promised Burt that they would spend the last couple weeks there before school began. Greg and Angie were working with another decorator and contractor to get the house there turned into a B&B, and they promised that they would have a room ready for Kurt and Blaine.

Burt picked the two up at the airport in Kurt's Navigator.

"What are you boys going to do with this once you're in New York permanently?" Burt asked once the greetings were done and they were on their way to Lima.

"It'll stay at the B&B," Kurt said. "Greg will make sure it's kept up and then it will be here when we fly back for visits. We'll need some way to get around."

"We really don't need a big car in the city," Blaine said. "In fact, it's easier to do without most of the time. We might have a garage at the house, but there isn't any place to park at Juilliard and Columbia isn't much better. We have a car service on retainer for when we need it, but mostly we plan on using public transportation. That's what New Yorkers do."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"So, how's married life treating you?" Rachel asked Kurt the next week. They were all at Artie's house for a barbecue. It was the last time all of the New Directions would be together before many left for college. Artie had even invited all of the Warblers and most were there. Kurt had been dragged away by the girls while Blaine caught up with Wes and David.

"It's pretty great," Kurt admitted. "I know that everything can't be perfect all the time and eventually we'll get on each other's nerves, but right now…"

"The honeymoon phase," Mercedes agreed. "Hang on to that as long as you can."

"Finn said you guys already own a place," Quinn said. "I knew Blaine's family had money, but I didn't really think it was _that_ much. New York apartments are expensive."

"Blaine's family hasn't given us anything," Kurt said carefully. "It turns out that my grandparents left me a little more than just a trust fund."

"Ooh," Tina said, eager for gossip. "How much more?"

Kurt sighed. "I don't want everyone to know this, so this stays in this group, right?"

"Of course," Rachel said. "It isn't like most of us talk to anyone outside this group anyway."

"So spill, Porcelain," Santana said.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Okay, so my grandparents were estranged because they didn't want my mom to marry my dad."

"We know all this already," Tina complained. "Get to the good stuff."

"My story, my way," Kurt said with a huff. "Now, where was I? Oh yes. I didn't really know them since they were only around a couple years before mom died and they disappeared from my life again. But they sent me some money in my birthday cards."

"Enough to buy all those fancy clothes you love so much," Santana said.

"Exactly," Kurt said. "But I never really thought about who they were or why they had that kind of money to send. I mean I knew my mom's maiden name but it never really clicked."

"What didn't?" Quinn practically snapped.

"My grandparents were Hilda and Gerald Gentry," Kurt finally said.

"Gentry," Mercedes said. "As in Gentry Industries? As in the Gentrys who own all of the factories in town? And about two dozen other factories all over the country that produce most of the soaps and cleaning products sold around the world, not to mention a bunch of other stuff?"

"As in the Gentrys who were worth a shitload of cash?" Santana asked.

"Those would be the ones," Kurt agreed.

"So they included you in their will?" Rachel asked. "That was kind of them."

"I'm their only grandchild," Kurt said carefully. "And my mother was their only child."

"What you're saying is that they didn't just give you a little gift in the will," Quinn said. "They left you everything."

"Pretty much," Kurt said and bit his lip.

"Exactly what is _everything_?" Mercedes wondered.

"Are you like Bill Gates rich?" Tina asked.

"More like Jim Walton rich," Kurt said. "He's one of the owners of Walmart. I checked the Forbes list from last year and my grandfather was listed between him and Michael Bloomberg."

"The Forbes list?" Tina asked. "You mean the Forbes annual list of _**Billionaires**_?"

"Um, yes?" Kurt said. There was silence. "Say something?"

"And all you got me for a wedding gift was a bracelet?" Mercedes asked with a teasing grin. "White boy, you had better do better than that."

Kurt opened his mouth and then shut it. "Actually, Blaine and I wanted to… Never mind, I think we need to tell everyone at the same time. Just call everyone together."

It took a few minutes to get everyone gathered, since some of the boys had found their way inside to the video games in Artie's room, but eventually everyone was gathered.

"What's up Princess?" Puck asked once they were all together.

Kurt took a deep breath and Blaine grabbed for his hand to give him courage. "So here's the story. Blaine and I are pretty much filthy rich now. I'm not going to go into the whole story, but my grandparents were Gerald and Hilda Gentry. They both died and left me a _lot_ of money. We'd really like it if that particular information wasn't spread around. So far, no one in the press has figured it out and we'd like to keep it that way as long as we can."

"So you really are a princess, now," Puck teased before getting an elbow in the gut from Mercedes. "Watch it, Aretha!"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "_Anyway_… we decided that we wanted to share some of our good fortune with our friends."

"Tell me you're buying us all cars," Santana said with a smirk. "I'll even call you Oprah."

"No cars," Blaine said with a happy smile, knowing that what they were offering was even better. "First of all, we wanted to make sure that both glee clubs will be around for a very long time. The Warblers already have an endowment, but we're adding to it. And we're setting up an endowment for the New Directions, so that the kids who come after won't ever have to worry about having enough money to hire a bus or buy costumes. We're also going to work with the school board to fund improvements to the music program at McKinley, so that all students have the chance to learn music in some form or another."

"On a more personal note, we've also decided to set up scholarship funds for the New Directions and the Warblers," Kurt told them. "Everyone who was in either group this year will receive $25,000 a year towards college for a max of four years. We based that number on the average total cost of attending a public four-year university in Ohio. Those of you going to private universities or out of state, you'll have to figure out the excess on your own."

"After the current kids all graduate, we'll offer scholarships based on need and achievement to six students a year," Blaine said. "Three from each school."

"Damn," Puck swore.

"What?" Kurt asked.

"Now I'm gonna have to go to college, aren't I?" Puck grumbled. "There's no way my ma will let me skip out now. There goes California for another 4 years."

"I didn't even know you applied to college," Santana said with a look of confusion.

Puck shrugged. "Ma made me. I was accepted at Kent and UC. I guess now I'm gonna have to actually go."

"Go, graduate, and we'll give you an extra bonus if you do it in four years," Kurt said spontaneously. "Something to jumpstart your life afterwards."

"Just him?" Santana asked. "Or does that apply to the rest of us?"

"All of you," Blaine said. He looked at Kurt for confirmation. "We'll give you each an additional $50,000 if you graduate in four years."

"But I'm already getting money for school," Brittany said. "Me and San got cheerleading scholarships to UK."

"Then use the money for your personal expenses," Kurt said. "Get a car to drive home sometimes. Or save it and use it to buy a house later."

"Why?" Quinn asked. "Why would you do this for us?"

"Because you're our friends," Kurt said. "And we can give back something to make your lives a little easier. None of you should have to spend your entire life paying for your education. No one should."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Kurt and Blaine went back to New York a week before classes were scheduled to begin. Most of their friends had left for college already but there were a few who had come to New York, so they met up with Rachel and David after they settled into their new dorms at NYADA and Columbia. Wes and Quinn were both going to Yale and were only a two hour train-ride away. And Thad was going to school in DC, and promised to take the train up sometimes as well.

School began and both Kurt and Blaine were quickly caught up in their classes, though they tried to make plenty of time to be together as well. Blaine soon made friends among the other Juilliard students, though there was a competitive tension present with almost all of them. Kurt and David shared several classes and made a few new friends together. Despite being business majors, they were a little more laid back than the Juilliard students. Kurt often met with a study group and they would share ideas and help each other out in ways that seemed impossible for the Juilliard students.

They spent the entire first semester just trying to get used to their new schedules and workloads. Being a college student was a lot different than being a high school student, even if that high school was as demanding as Dalton. When they finished their finals that semester, they were both exhausted.

They went back to Ohio for the holidays. It was great seeing their families and friends, but they only stayed until just after New Year before heading home to New York. Ohio just felt to confining after the freedom they had found to be themselves in New York.

The new semester started and they both got very busy very quickly. Despite that, they made sure to make time for each other. They even made sure to schedule regular meetings with Rachel and David. But even so, neither of their friends had been to the house. In fact, no one other than Ari and Chad had been over for dinner or anything else.

"I want to invite the study group over here," Kurt said one Sunday afternoon in late March. "We've been having the group in coffee shops, but they get loud and crowded. And no one else has the space we have in their apartment or dorm."

Blaine shrugged. "You know I don't mind having people over."

Kurt did know that, and yet they still hadn't had even their old friends over to visit. It was because their place was so much nicer than what anyone they knew could afford. Even Kurt and Blaine sometimes got lost in all that space and had to call each other's cell phones to find one another.

Kurt sighed. "I'm just not sure that they won't start treating me differently once they see this place."

Blaine wrapped his arms around his husband. "Better to find out now than later when you've become more invested in the friendships."

"I guess you're right," Kurt said. "And we really should have Rachel and David over for dinner sometime."

"Michael can finally show off his culinary skills," Blaine said. "He's been dying for us to throw a dinner party. He said he's afraid that he'll get rusty if we don't challenge him occasionally."

Kurt chuckled. "What? Our requests for meatloaf or lasagna are too boring for him?"

"Apparently," Blaine agreed. "How about this? You invite your study group over on Tuesday and I'll invite our friends for dinner on Saturday. I'll even see if Wes, Quinn and Thad want to come for the weekend. You don't have any major papers due next week, do you?"

"No, I'm pretty much caught up on my assignments," Kurt said. "And this coming weekend would probably be a good time to have everyone. Spring break will be here before we know it and then the end of the semester will be hectic with papers and finals."

"And I'll have my first recital," Blaine said. He was actually looking forward to that. He had been selected as one of only two freshmen to participate in the school's year-end recital. It was considered a major honor. He was actually going to be performing two pieces: one a piano concerto and one a contemporary vocal piece. Both were original works that he had written for his composition courses.

"I'm looking forward to that," Kurt said.

"So we have a plan?" Blaine asked.

"We do," Kurt agreed.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Two days later, Kurt got home from his last class to find both Michael and Blaine preparing for the study group. Michael was in the kitchen making a selection of canapés and finger sandwiches that would impress the most finicky foodie. And Blaine was staring at the furniture in the main parlor when Kurt walked up to him.

"Sweetie, what are you doing?" Kurt asked.

"Trying to decide if you should have your friends in here, or the game room or the library," Blaine said. "The game room is a lot less formal and a lot more comfortable. But it could be distracting and I was going to practice in the music room."

Kurt kissed Blaine. "I love that you want this to be perfect, but you could hold a dance marathon in the same room and it would still be less noisy than the cafés we have been using."

"So the game room it is," Blaine said.

"Have you eaten dinner yet?" Kurt asked.

Blaine shook his head. "I just got back from school a few minutes before you. But Michael has made plenty of food and is setting it up in the dining room. I thought I'd hang out with you and meet your friends until everyone arrives, and then I'll take a plate of food to the music room and work for a while."

"Sounds like a good plan," Kurt said. "I've wanted to show you off."

Kurt and Blaine went to shower and change clothes and when they emerged an hour later, Michael had everything ready for their guests. Kurt and Blaine sat and talked in the game room while they waited for Kurt's study group to arrive. Soon, the doorbell rang and Jarvis went to greet the first arrivals.

Blaine found that he really liked most of the group. He knew David, of course. Tracy and Gina were obviously a couple and they were both very outgoing. Calvin, Jen and Gary arrived together and seemed excited to meet Blaine.

"Kurt's always gushing about his perfect husband," Jen told him. "Now I can see why."

The only one that Blaine had any doubts about was Charlie who had to make a comment about their place as soon as he walked through the door. "Wow. I was sure I had the wrong address when I showed up. You guys are living the high life. It must be nice."

It wasn't so much what he said, but the way he said it that made Blaine's skin crawl. It was like he was imagining what he would have to do to get a piece of the "high life." And when he looked at Kurt, Blaine just wanted to punch him.

"I can understand why you wouldn't exactly advertise that you have money," Tracy said while giving Charlie a dark look. "_Some people_ might try and use you."

Blaine liked her even more for that. He talked with them for a few more minutes before grabbing some food and heading off to his music room. Everyone else grabbed some food, most of them gushing over how great Michael's food was, especially in comparison to the food they got at school. But eventually they settled down to get some work done.

It wasn't until after eleven that the group began to gather up their books and get ready to head home. Kurt walked them towards the foyer, but most of the group stopped when they heard music. Kurt smiled and let them go explore for a minute. Blaine had left the door to the music room ajar and Kurt could hear him singing and playing the vocal piece he had written and would be performing for his upcoming recital. It was one of Kurt's favorite songs.

Blaine had begun writing the song while they were in Milan on their honeymoon. The lyrics were a combination of English and Italian and told the story of two lovers meeting under the moonlight. He had been inspired when he and Kurt had taken a walk through the garden at their hotel in the moonlight. It was such a sensual song, and yet not overtly sexual in any way. It was filled with love and passion and every time Kurt heard that song, he felt like he had visceral proof of Blaine's love for him.

When the last notes of the song faded, the others all began to clap and Kurt opened the door to the music room wider to find a sheepish Blaine sitting at the piano. "I guess you're all getting ready to go?"

"That was beautiful," Calvin said. "Kurt wasn't kidding when he said he found the perfect guy."


	10. Chapter 10

**Part Ten**

Quinn and Wes arrived Friday evening and Kurt showed them around the house before letting them clean up in their rooms. Blaine was late getting back from his rehearsal. There was only a week left before the recital and the faculty was getting anxious to make sure that the students were all properly prepared. The spring recital was a big event for the school and many alumni and even some famous VIPs always attended. That was one of the reasons it was such an honor to be selected to perform.

Nick and Jeff, who were on Spring break from Dalton, arrived just as Quinn and Wes were emerging from their rooms. Rachel was next to arrive and then David. Thad wouldn't be coming up until Saturday morning. Blaine didn't arrive home until just before Michael served dinner.

Over dinner, the old friends all caught up. They compared courses and schools. And of course love lives were a featured topic of conversation. Quinn had begun dating a sophomore pre-law student. Wes had broken up with his longtime girlfriend after only one month going to schools on opposite ends of the country. Nick and Jeff had finally—Finally!—admitted to each other that they were more than just best friends. David admitted that he and Mercedes had been corresponding, but that they weren't really at a point where they wanted to try a long distance relationship.

"I'm definitely going to have words with Ms. Jones," Kurt muttered, since he hadn't heard any of this from her in the numerous emails they had exchanged since she had left for California. She had been offered a job as a backup singer for a rather well known R&B artist and was having a blast so far. She was taking correspondence courses towards her degree while she travelled, but hoped that she would be able to settle down enough to finish before the four years were up.

"What about you, Rachel?" Quinn asked the diva.

Rachel took a sip of wine and sighed. "I have decided to concentrate my energy into my education and career for the time being. In order to succeed, I must not lose focus on my goals. If dating Finn taught me one thing, it is that romance is a distraction."

"While I admire your dedication, I'm not sure I agree with the sentiment," Wes said. "With the right person, love can be an inspiration to succeed rather than a deterrent. Just look at Kurt and Blaine. They support each other's dreams and they are both more prosperous because they are together."

Rachel frowned. "They have many advantages that the rest of us don't. Just look at this house."

"The money isn't what makes our relationship work," Blaine protested. "In fact, at times it can be more of a hassle than a help. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate that we don't have to worry about how we're going to make ends meet. But even if we were both struggling to get by, I know that Kurt and I would still be together and we would still be pushing each other to follow our dreams."

"Wes is right," Kurt said. "Because I love Blaine, I want to see him succeed. And I know that I'm Finn's brother so I'm probably biased, but I think Finn actually was very supportive of your ambitions. You told me that he was the one who pushed you to go for your dreams of NYADA, even though he knew he wasn't going to be able to follow you. He put your dreams above his own."

"And he was right to do it," Quinn said. "Rachel, you and I have talked about this. You and Finn don't have the same dreams. You would never have been happy settling down in Ohio and raising a family. And Finn would never have been happy trying to fit into New York society. But that doesn't mean that you should give up on relationships altogether."

"Perhaps," Rachel sighed.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Thad's train got in early and he was able to join the friends for brunch at the house before they all gathered in the music room to play around and sing. Though Blaine was better on the piano, he let Kurt at the keyboard and he took out his guitar. Between the two of them, they were able to play just about any of the songs that their friends tossed at them. They sang show tunes for Kurt and Rachel, but most of their friends were more interested in popular music.

Once everyone had gotten that out of their systems, they settled down in the game room to just relax for a while and eat a light lunch that Michael had prepared. Michael had really outdone himself with the wraps. The Tuscan club had ancho chili mayonnaise, applewood smoked bacon, grilled chicken, jack cheese, avocado, tomatoes and lettuce on a whole grain wrap. But there was also the Thai chicken wrap with grilled chicken breast, fresh basil, mint, and cilantro, red onion, tomato, cucumber and lemongrass sauce in a sundried tomato wrap. Kurt's favorite was the Provencal turkey wrap with a black olive spread, roasted red peppers, goat cheese and lettuce. And of course there was a vegan offering for Rachel: a chickpea falafel with spinach, tomatoes, cucumber, green peppers and garlic- tahini sauce. Served with a choice of sweet potato salad or black bean and corn salad, there was plenty of food for everyone.

"Michael, why aren't you catering or being head chef at some five-star restaurant?" Quinn asked as she tried to discretely refill her plate. "Between the huge spread you made for breakfast, the amazing dinner last night and now this…I don't think I've ever eaten better."

Michael chuckled. "I did the restaurant thing. It got old. I hated working my ass off for other people to the point of getting sick from stress and still having no say in what I served. Cooking for Kurt and Blaine is a lot easier, plus, they are pretty adventurous with food and let me experiment on them pretty often. And someday, I might think about opening my own place. But not for a while."

"Well, you've got your first customers right here if you do," Nick vowed. Michael nodded gratefully but went back to work cleaning up the kitchen.

"So, what's on the agenda tonight?" David asked as he reached for another Tuscan club wrap.

Kurt and Blaine exchanged glances, but Blaine was the one who answered. "We got tickets to a show."

Wes and David groaned. "Please tell me it isn't Broadway," Wes whined.

"It isn't Broadway," Kurt laughed. "We know how you guys feel about musical theater. No, we found out that Jason Mraz is doing a concert in a club down in SoHo tonight so we got VIP tickets for all of us. The limo will be here at seven, we'll go to dinner and then the concert starts at ten."

"Awesome," Jeff said with a huge grin.

In truth, everyone was excited by the plans.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

After everyone had gone home on Sunday afternoon, Kurt and Blaine decided to relax for a few hours after the hectic weekend. So they had settled in front of the TV in the game room to watch a marathon of Disney movies.

"How long has Wes wanted to hook up with Rachel?" Kurt asked while Beauty and the Beast played on the TV.

Blaine snorted. "I think he was smitten the first time he heard her lecture New Directions on the importance of having a winning attitude before sectionals last year."

"But he was still with Jeannie," Kurt said with surprise.

"And he never would have acted on his feelings if he and Jeannie hadn't broken up," Blaine said. "Do you think he and Rachel have a shot?"

"Maybe," Kurt shrugged. "She's not nearly as self-involved as she appears most of the time. She actually has a good heart. But long distance relationships aren't easy, even if it's only two hours away."

"I guess," Blaine said. "I'd like to think we would have made it work if we had to."

"I'm glad we didn't have to," Kurt said. They both were quiet for a few minutes while Lumiere sang "Be Our Guest." But then Kurt spoke up again. "I was actually surprised when Rachel took him home with her last night. She's really not that kind of girl."

"Wes told me this afternoon that nothing happened," Blaine said. "They went back to her place and talked until morning. Apparently she even let him get a few words in."

Kurt snorted in amusement. "Well, I guess that explains why they both looked exhausted when they showed up for brunch. I hope they can find a way to make it work. Rachel is a lot easier to take when she's happy. She's still as driven, but she's…softer, I guess."

"A softer Rachel can't be a bad thing," Blaine agreed.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

The next two years seemed to fly by for Kurt and Blaine. Their friends started showing up for visits pretty regularly. Puck even spent his entire spring break with them their second year of college rather than heading south. Those closest in proximity were there most often, but it was surprising how popular their house was once word got out how much space they had and how great their cook and staff were at taking care of guests.

Burt and Carole were also regular visitors. After getting the garage out of debt, Burt had a little more financial freedom and was able to hire an assistant manager to run things so he could actually get away a few times a year.

As promised, Blaine and Kurt spent both summers traveling. They went back to see more of Europe the first year, including Greece and Turkey, much to Kurt's delight. The second summer they went to Japan for a month.

School, once they got past that first year, wasn't so bad. Blaine felt a little stifled by the limitations on his creativity that the faculty placed on him, but he was learning quite a lot. Kurt, on the other hand, was blowing through his business courses with ease and had taken a second major in order to earn the degree, he had to show proficiency in at least four languages. He was already fluent in French and Spanish, so he was now working on German and Italian. In order to finish on time, however, he had to cram an extra course into his schedule each semester.

In late March of their third year, the couple went back to Ohio for spring break. Blaine's recital had gone very well, as it had both years before, and his latest vocal piece-this one about finding love so early in life-had gotten him a paragraph in several local papers. There was also a music producer in attendance that evening that was interested in having him record the song.

Blaine and Kurt had gone back and forth about the decision several times, but in the end decided to go for it. Blaine wasn't sure that he wanted to pursue a career performing, but it couldn't hurt to record one song and make a few connections. They had talked their concerns over with Ari and with the record label and they had agreed that any promotions could be limited to the summer months until after Blaine graduated, assuming that the song made any sort of impact on the record charts.

Because of that, they were only able to take a short trip to Ohio in the summer between their junior and senior years before returning to New York so Blaine could spend some time in the recording studio. He had six songs that he was going to record and if the first did well, they would release the other songs as an EP.

Because Kurt wasn't doing anything while Blaine was recording, he went to the studio each day to watch the process. And then, when they were getting ready to record the third song, the backup singer that the studio hired backed out at the last minute and Blaine convinced Kurt to record the song with him. Considering the fact that Kurt knew all of Blaine's music by heart, it didn't take him long to get his tracks down. When school started back up in September, everything was set for the song to be released.

"Pretty soon, you're going to be famous," Kurt said one afternoon in November as the two snuggled together on the sofa while they both worked on class assignments.

"And then all the work we did to keep our names out of the papers because of your grandparents' money will have been for nothing," Blaine said with a frown.

Kurt shook his head. "It's not the fame that bothers me as much as the idea that people would make us into celebrities over money. If you earn your fame through hard work, that's something else entirely. I don't expect you to hide away to avoid people knowing who I am. You're song will go platinum and then we'll deal with the fame that comes with being one of the most talented musicians in the country."

Blaine grinned. "I love that you say when and not if."

Kurt snuggled a little closer to Blaine. "That's because I believe in you and in us. I know that we can do anything we set our minds to as long as we do it together."

"We can," Blaine agreed. "I was thinking. Since we're going to be famous…possibly soon, I think we should take advantage of our relative anonymity while we can."

"Meaning?" Kurt sat up and looked into Blaine's eyes.

"Meaning there's something I've always wanted to do and never got to," Blaine said. "And once I'm a famous singer we won't be able to experience it properly."

"What exactly did you have in mind?" Kurt asked.

"I wanna go to Disney World," Blaine blurted out. "We never got to go when I was a kid. Dad was always working too hard and mom hates big crowds. But I always wanted to go. Can we? Please?"

Kurt laughed at his husband who now sounded like a five year old. "We do have winter break coming up."

"Yes!" Blaine said and then bounced off the sofa to do a little happy dance. "We're going to Disney!"

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Their trip to Disney was perfect. They went to Ohio for Christmas and headed south just after the New Year. Despite not making their reservations until late, they found that money really does get you places. They stayed at the Grand Floridian and the concierge service was able to get them into all of the shows and special dinners that they wouldn't have been able to get into on their own. Blaine insisted that Kurt take a picture with Pinocchio—because they did share an eerie resemblance—and Kurt got a photo of Blaine with Prince Eric—for the same reason—and they got tons of photos with Mickey and a lot of their other favorite characters.

When they returned from their ten days in Florida, however, it was just in time for the release of Blaine's single. Within a couple weeks, his name and face was all over the media. The song hit the iTunes chart within a month of its release and was on the Billboard list soon after. Six weeks after it was released, they were getting calls for interviews and photo-shoots and Blaine's fellow students were clamoring for his attention anytime he was on campus. In the eighth week, the song hit number four on Billboard's Top 40 radio countdown.

In the meantime, Blaine couldn't seem to leave their house without being hounded by fans and reporters.

"I think we should have thought this through a little better," Blaine sighed after he was once again forced to skip classes because he couldn't go anywhere without a dozen paparazzo following him. "I mean, I'm never going to graduate like this."

"It's only a few more months," Kurt tried.

"A few more months of this chaos?" Blaine said. "And I talked to the dean, she said that there's no way I can graduate without finishing my last semester. But I can't even get to my classes. I'm not learning as much as I thought I would. And I really feel stifled there."

"So, you have two options: leave school and concentrate on your career or hire a body guard to get you to class for the next two months," Kurt said. "No matter which you decide, I'll be here to support you."

Blaine was quiet for a moment. "What about you? Would you leave school too? What are you learning at school that you don't already know?"

Kurt smiled. "A lot, actually. I've learned so much about how the economy works and how to take advantage of the global market. I have a better understanding about how to manage our money and work with Glenda and Ari to maximize our finances. Plus, I like getting a broader education. I like taking history and politics and literature and sociology. I like learning new languages. I think my education will really help me to have a broader understanding of the world and the people in it. And if that helps me make better decisions for both our personal finances and for the people who rely on us for jobs, then all the better."

"Oh," Blaine said a little quietly.

"What's the matter, Sweetie?" Kurt asked.

Blaine shrugged. "I guess I was being a little selfish. I thought maybe if I quit that you might too. I know that I'm going to have to travel for these interviews and do tours and things. I kinda hoped you'd want to come with me."

Kurt smiled sadly at his husband and kissed his cheek. "That had crossed my mind as well. And I'm happy to travel with you as long as you promise to go with me when I want to play tourist. But it will have to wait until I graduate in June or during spring break."

"I suppose I can live with that," Blaine said and kissed his husband. "And now we're back to the chaos that is my life. Maybe I should try the bodyguard thing. If it doesn't work, then the decision will be made for me. "

"That and plan our fourth anniversary," Kurt said. "It's next week, you know."

"I did know," Blaine responded with a smile. "In fact I've already made reservations for the two of us for a special night on the town. Just don't be surprised if we're followed by men with cameras."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Besides the bodyguard, Blaine ended up hiring an agent and publicist to deal with all of the insanity. Three months after his single was released, one week after his graduation from Juilliard and a week before Kurt's graduation from Columbia, Blaine agreed to his first official interview and photo-shoot. Kurt, who had just taken his last final that morning, went with him. The publicist had tried to convince Blaine that he would be better off keeping his sexuality quiet for the time being, but Blaine had insisted that he was not going to hide who he was for anyone or anything. Besides, their marriage was a matter of public record. Rather than lose a potentially big client, the man had backed down.

When asked about his personal life, Blaine had happily told the reporter that he was married to his high school sweetheart, who just happened to be a man. He also told them that the song that was being played on radio stations all over the country was written for his husband.

The response from that first interview was amazing. While there was some backlash at Blaine's declaration, most of the fan mail was positive and the song actually went to number one that week and stayed there for a while.

Kurt's graduation had a lot more media interest than most college graduations since the press was still very interested in everything that Blaine did. But Kurt and Blaine had learned to ignore them mostly and the school's security kept them from getting out of hand.

That summer was spent doing small events and interviews around the country. They even spent a week in Los Angeles and Kurt was able to catch up with Mercedes.

The record label held off on releasing the EP and decided to record a complete album, though they did release a second song in August. In September, they went back to New York and Kurt started considering his career options while Blaine went back to writing and recording five more songs for the album.

It was in November that all hell broke loose.


	11. Chapter 11

**Part Eleven**

"Why the hell did they dig this up after all this time?" Kurt wondered as he stared at the tabloid headline. There was a grainy picture of the two of them leaving a restaurant that had been taken the week before. "I mean, why do they even care?"

"_Blaine Anderson Married to Gentry Heir_" the headline read.

Blaine shrugged. "I'm popular right now and you're my husband. It was probably inevitable that they would start digging for more information about you."

Kurt tossed the paper onto the coffee table and sighed. "Ari suggested we hire more bodyguards and a full-time driver. Considering the number of people standing outside our house, not all of whom are with the press, I'm not sure that's a bad idea."

"So much for our simple life of anonymity," Blaine said.

"So much for afternoons of retail therapy," Kurt said. "Now I'll have to have an entourage."

"At least you'll have someone to carry the bags," Blaine teased.

Kurt chuckled. "That is one benefit."

Blaine hugged Kurt close. "We deal with whatever comes our way, right?"

"Together," Kurt affirmed.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Charles, Kurt's primary bodyguard, didn't look much like a bodyguard in Kurt's opinion. He actually reminded Kurt of Puck, minus the Mohawk. Kurt insisted that the man dress a little better than the cheap Sears suit that he showed up in the first day, so he took the man shopping. In fact, he made Lester, Blaine's primary bodyguard go as well. The two men-along with the three men and one woman who served in their place when they were off duty-were now the proud owners of more tailored designer fashions than anyone else in their profession. Despite their lack of innate fashion sense, however, they were both very good at their work and did a remarkable job of keeping the paparazzi and random strangers away from the couple. And surprisingly, the public seemed to leave Kurt alone when he was out, so life didn't change much, aside from his new shadow.

While Blaine continued to go to the studio every day, Kurt spent his mornings with Glenda learning more about managing their finances and investments and then spent a couple afternoons each week researching possible investment opportunities. With Blaine's new income and the new expenses produced with the need for security, Kurt found himself spending more time with Glenda and Ari. The B&B was up and running and so they had that income as well, though it didn't really compare to what Blaine was making from his record sales or any of the other investments, really.

On top of all that, now that people knew he was the heir to the Gentry fortune, Kurt was getting requests for donations from all sorts of people.

"Maybe you should just start a foundation," Ari suggested one evening over dinner. He and Kurt had been working together most of the afternoon and so Kurt had invited him to stay for one of Michael's incredible meals. Blaine had gotten home from the studio and now they were considering what they should do about all the requests for money. "You can hire a staff to run the foundation and deal with all of these requests. And you can gear it so that you only support the things that are important to you."

"Like helping gay teens," Blaine suggested.

"Or supporting the arts in schools," Kurt agreed. "That's not a bad idea."

They spent the rest of dinner discussing the legal details involved with starting up a foundation, setting up an endowment fund, and how much of the interest must be distributed each year. They also discussed what types of charities they wanted to support and whether they wanted to approach the charities first, or would they be open to being approached without invitation.

Kurt looked thoughtful as they sipped on their after dinner coffee. "On top of what we discussed transferring into the foundation, I thought that since both European houses are finally under contract for sale and will be closing in the next couple weeks, why don't we add that money to the foundation?"

Blaine raised his brows, "Honey, that's more than $50 million after the exchange. On top of the $100 million we already discussed. That's an awful lot of money."

"Actually, it's not unreasonable," Ari said. "I've done a little research since I first thought about proposing this idea to you. With an endowment that size, your foundation would need to distribute between $7.5 and $8.5 million each year. And you could always give out more. That would give you the freedom to help out a lot of different organizations. Or you could give a lot of money to a few worthy groups."

Blaine shrugged. "It's up to you, Kurt. You're the one who has been dealing with all of this."

Kurt nodded slowly. "Let's do that. Ari, you can set up the endowment?"

"As soon as the money comes through," Ari said. "I'll discuss it with Glenda. And I'll talk to a woman I know who specializes in foundation law."

"Good," Kurt said. "And I'd like me and Blaine to be included in the interview process for hiring the foundation president. I think it's important that we find someone who understands what our priorities are and when to make exceptions to whatever rules we establish."

"I'll set it up," Ari said. "There was one other thing I needed to discuss with you. I received a letter from Gentry Industries. It's been more than four years since you took control of your grandfather's shares, but you haven't taken up your seat on the board. They didn't say so outright, but it's making them nervous."

"Why?" Blaine asked. "We just leave them alone to do what they want to do."

"Except if they aren't meeting and interacting with you, they start to worry that you will either sell off your shares to some corporate shark or that you might want to come in at some point and take over," Ari said. "I know that's not the case, but they don't."

"That company is my family legacy," Kurt said. "I don't want to sell our shares in it. Besides, I've seen the profit we make from those shares."

"But Kurt's just graduated from college. He has no real business experience. Why would they even want him there?" Blaine asked.

"Because I'm the largest shareholder," Kurt said. "Even if I just go and don't say anything at the meetings, the other shareholders will feel better, as will the executives in the company." He turned back to Ari. "Alright, when and where is the next meeting?"

Ari smiled. "Well, you know that the headquarters for Gentry Industries is in Columbus, but because a large number of the major shareholders are located in New York, they hold all but one board meetings in the city. The only meetings that are in Ohio are the annual stockholders meetings where any and all shareholders are welcomed to hear about the progress of the company."

"So I can attend most board meetings here," Kurt said. "I suppose that's good."

"The next meeting is on Friday," Ari said a little apologetically. "And I think that Glenda and I should go with you to this first meeting; Blaine too, for that matter, since you jointly own the shares since your marriage. After that, you might want to take Glenda with you, at least until you feel a little more comfortable."

"Which won't be for a very long time," Kurt said. "There is a reason I went to school for business. I knew I needed to learn this stuff and I actually do enjoy it. But most of the people in that room have had decades to learn how to do this stuff."

"Kurt, you can do anything you set your mind to do," Blaine said as he took his husband's hand and gave it a squeeze. "If you want to take an active role, I'm sure that you will do just fine. But if you don't want to be active on the board, you don't have to be."

Kurt sighed. "I know. I guess I'm just feeling overwhelmed. There's so much to do and think about. I feel like every time I turn around, there's something else I need to deal with. And now we're getting invitations to all sorts of things from charity galas to red carpet openings… I just feel like I never have time for any of the things that are important to me."

"Why don't we hire an assistant for you," Blaine said. "Someone who can figure out which invitations are important and which we can skip. Someone who can deal with coordinating our schedules. Someone who can make sure you get that time that you need to research investments and practice your Japanese with that trader in Tokyo."

"Yeah, okay," Kurt said wryly. "We can provide employment for one more person. We're certainly doing our part to stimulate the economy."

"Make that two people," Blaine said. "I should probably have an assistant too. There's no way I can keep up with everything that the record label and my publicist keep throwing at me."

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Kurt went to the board meeting with his entourage and he and Blaine were introduced to all of the other board members. They sat and listened politely as the chairperson went through the agenda. Kurt was surprised to find that he was genuinely interested in some of the new projects that were being discussed. They were trying to move the company towards more environmentally friendly products and manufacturing methods. Of course, they discussed the monetary benefits versus the costs, but in all, it seemed that the other board members were supportive of the plans, even if it took some time before they would see the full long-range payoff.

When it came time to vote on the project, Kurt was happy to raise his hand in support when his name was called.

After the meeting, Kurt and Blaine had interviews arranged with potential assistants. Since they both needed an assistant, they decided to do the interviews together and hopefully find someone to fit their respective needs. After meeting ten candidates, they sat back and discussed the possibilities.

"I think we should call that perky blond girl back for a second interview," Blaine said as they looked through their notes.

"Oh god, you do not need anyone around you with that much energy," Kurt groaned. "You would just feed off each other until we had a vortex of perkiness."

"Not for me, idiot," Blaine said fondly. "For _you_. You need someone like that to drag you out of your moods sometimes. Besides, she seemed like she had a thick skin and you actually liked her outfit."

"True," Kurt agreed. "Okay, we'll have a second interview with her. And you should call that kid who has been doing the internship at the record company. He's desperate to get some real experience in the music industry and I think he would really work hard."

"I'm just afraid that he'll be good for a few months and then move on when a better opportunity comes along," Blaine said. "I mean, I couldn't blame him for wanting to move up if he can, but I was hoping to find someone who would stick around for a while."

"Then what about calling him back and asking his intentions?" Kurt said. "And call back the guy from Dayton too. He's just looking for a way to support himself while his girlfriend goes to school here. He'll probably be good for the three years before she graduates at least."

Two days later, they had each hired their new assistant. Kurt went with Liz, the peppy girl that Blaine recommended and Blaine went with Peter, the boy from Dayton. He did offer to help the other guy, Tyrone, by introducing him to the executive at the record label, and he ended up getting an entry-level position there instead.

After only two weeks with Liz, Kurt knew that they had made the right decision. She and Peter worked together to keep the couple's schedules so that they could attend events together whenever possible. She also helped Kurt keep all the information from Ari and Glenda organized. And she also made sure Kurt made it to meetings on time and had time for his pet projects. She made the reservations for their trip to Ohio over the holidays, worked with Peter and the publicist to arrange publicity events and even helped Kurt choose small businesses in which he wanted to invest. But best of all, she really did keep Kurt from getting too down when things got stressful.

On one such stressful day in late April, after a morning of classes followed by a meeting with Ari about the foundation and the delays they had experienced in getting it set up, she suggested that they stop by the studio with lunch for Blaine and then take a few hours to shop. With Charles along, there was no reason to fear being mobbed. Besides, the press really had died down after the first three months or so.

It was the perfect way to cheer Kurt up.

"Hey gorgeous," Blaine said with a smile when he saw Kurt come into the studio. If there hadn't been a glass wall between them, he would have gone and kissed him.

Kurt waited for the sound guy to flip a switch so that Blaine could hear Kurt and then said, "We brought lunch. And then I'm taking an afternoon off to go shopping."

"Great!" Blaine said with a smile. "I'm starving. We just have to get one good take on this and then I'm actually done for the day, so maybe I'll join you?"

"Sounds perfect," Kurt said.

He sat down and watched while Blaine and the producer discussed something and then he was caught up in the beauty of Blaine's voice. There was so much passion in his music that Kurt couldn't help but be carried away.

"We should have you to the studio more often, Kurt," Carl, the producer said. "Blaine is always so much more intense when you're around. Makes for great recordings."

"That's because he's the inspiration for almost all my songs," Blaine said with a grin as he stepped into the sound booth and finally kissed Kurt hello. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself," Kurt said with a soft smile. "I missed you."

"I always miss you," Blaine countered.

Peter cleared his throat. "Sorry to interrupt. But if you want to take this afternoon off, we should probably get out of here. I saw one of the execs heading this way with a determined look on his face. Also, don't forget that you both have that charity event tonight."

Kurt and Blaine both groaned, but decided to take Peter's advice. They grabbed Charles, Lester and Liz on the way out and emerged onto the street a few minutes later. Blaine led them to a nearby park where they could eat the lunch that Kurt and Liz had picked up for everyone. Despite having four other people tagging along, it was actually pretty romantic and fun having a spontaneous picnic in the middle of Manhattan.

Since they were only a few blocks from the shopping district and some of Kurt's favorite stores, the six of them strolled in that direction once the food was eaten. They stopped at Armani Exchange first and then went next door to Gianni Versace. They made stops at Salvatore Ferragamo, Fendi, Prada, Gucci, and Van Cleef & Arpels before heading back down to Saks Fifth Avenue.

Everyone was loaded down with bags by the time they called for a car to come pick them up. But it was a good day, and it certainly cheered Kurt up.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

Blaine's album was a huge hit. Over the next year, there were four singles that went platinum and he was nominated for two Grammys. In the meantime, Kurt worked hard learning everything he could about Gentry Industries and their personal investments.

Wesley, who had graduated from Yale a few days before Kurt and David's graduation the year before, was going to Columbia for law school now. He did an internship with Ari's law firm both summers. In fact, all of the Warblers and New Directions that had graduated from high school with them had graduated in the allotted four years. Even Puck had gotten his degree and his nursing certification and was working at a hospital in Columbus. Finn had earned his certification to teach music and had a job at one of the elementary schools in Findlay. Rachel had graduated from NYADA and had spent the year looking for her first role on Broadway-Kurt was pretty sure that she was living off the bonus money. Quinn had graduated from Yale with a degree in marketing and had gotten a job with an advertising agency in Philadelphia. Mercedes had to take a few courses every summer to catch up after spending so much of her first two years on the road, but she graduated with a degree in music and was considering making the move to New York to be closer to David, with whom she still kept in close contact, though their relationship was still unofficial. Santana and Brittany graduated from UK with degrees in business and fine arts respectively. Thad had graduated with a degree in engineering and was in grad school at Stanford. Mike had graduated from Northwestern and was teaching dance lessons in Chicago while he looked for a regular dancing gig.

The rest of their friends had just graduated and weren't established yet, but Kurt and Blaine were proud that they had all graduated on time They were all motivated to get that bonus money. They knew from Britt and Santana that they were planning to use both the bonus money and the majority of their scholarship money to buy a house once they they got more settled in their new jobs. Puck was apparently putting away his bonus money to help his sister pay for college. Thad, Wes and David were using their bonus money to help pay for grad school. Mike and Rachel were both using the money to help pay the rent. The bonus money really was a huge help to each of them for getting a start in life.

No one had been more surprised than Kurt when Rachel and Wes' budding relationship had taken off. That it was still going strong after four years was a near miracle in Kurt's opinion. Even more surprising to him was the fact that Mercedes and David were getting serious, despite still living on opposite sides of the country. Her mumblings about moving to New York were getting more frequent and less wishful thinking. Her career had pretty much stalled out after touring with the R&B singer and she hadn't gotten any real offers in the past three years. Plus David was in New York.

Kurt was actually really hoping that Mercedes would make the move. He missed her. And he knew that if she didn't, David would probably eventually move out to LA and Kurt couldn't stand that thought.

It was kind of odd how close the two of them had become over the past five years. Despite spending a year at Dalton together, Kurt had always felt like David was more Blaine's friend than his. But since going to college together, Kurt found that David really was a good friend. He listened to Kurt when he bitched about Blaine's bad habits and gave great advice about how to deal with business issues.

So when Kurt decided that he wanted to take a more hands on approach to his investments, of course he went to David first. He wasn't going to start playing the stock market or fire Glenda, but he did want to be more involved in his family business and possibly begin investing in promising new enterprises. David could work for him and go to college for his MBA in the evenings.

"I want to start an investment company," Kurt told David one day over lunch that summer. "I want to invest venture capital in small businesses that have potential to become really great. I've been dabbling for the last year, but I want to make it more formal. And I want you to be the president of the company."

David nodded. "You know I'll accept, if for no other reason than there's no way I could find a better offer straight out of college. But I guess I need to know what sort of things you want to invest in."

"Anything and everything," Kurt said. "But I'm not looking for the types of businesses that can get venture capital from the usual places. I'm talking more about the single mom who wants to start a daycare but has no money to get it off the ground and the government loans aren't enough, or she's too afraid of losing everything if it fails. I'm talking about the guy with an award winning barbecue recipe and no way to market it. We get a team together and not only give them the startup money, but help with putting together a good business plan, marketing, advice, anything we can do to help them succeed."

"You want a permanent team," David said. "Well, Quinn has her degree in marketing and last I heard she hates that agency in Philly. She told Artie who told Tina who told Mercedes that they have her fetching coffee and answering phones. We could probably get her to come over."

"And Santana and Brittany still haven't found steady work," Kurt said. "They could come to work for us too. Britt's graphic design skills will come in handy with marketing. And Santana may not be pleasant, but she could help get business plans together and find potential investments."

"We'll need legal representation," David said.

"For now, I think Ari can handle it," Kurt said. "I was hoping that when Wes graduates, he might come over. He's taking corporate law, right?"

David grinned. "I bet he'll be thrilled to have a job lined up before finishing his first year of law school. Plus, it will be a lot of fun if I get to be his boss for a change."

Kurt laughed at that. "You aren't still holding his obsession with the gavel against him, are you?"

"Not really," David denied, but then relented sheepishly. "Okay, only a little. It'll just be fun teasing him about it."

Kurt shook his head with fond exasperation. "Well, Jeff and Nick will be graduating next year; Nick is another marketing major and could work with Quinn. Jeff is doing accounting and could probably help the owners deal with the practicalities of bookkeeping. They could both be very useful if they're interested in working with us."

"Sounds good," David said with a grin. "Anyone else you want to employ from our old friends?"

Kurt chuckled. "I'd employ anyone who needed a job, but this isn't about that. It's about using the talents of the people I know to do something good for other people."

"You know, technically, we could do this as a non-profit," David said. "If your motivation is really helping people, and not turning a profit, it might make sense. There would be tax benefits. And we could offer long-term, low-interest loans rather than buying into the businesses."

"No loans," Kurt said firmly. "Some people won't participate if there are loans involved. They worry about being able to pay them back. But we can build in a clause in the contract that says that once the business starts making a profit, and _only_ if they are making a profit, we will get a small percentage of that profit until we recoup our original investment, at which time, we will forfeit any claims to the business."

"So yes to the non-profit status?" David asked.

"Yes," Kurt decided. "It could actually be partially funded through the Elizabeth Hummel Foundation. And Blaine and I will fund part of it personally, too. Glenda will be happy about that for tax purposes."

"I'll talk to Ari about getting our 501(c)3 status," David said. "And we'll need a name to register."

"Innovative Enterprises," Kurt said.

**BKBKBKBKBK**

"Kurt, honey?" Blaine called as he wandered through the house. He had tried calling Kurt's cell phone but hadn't gotten an answer. "Kurt!"

"Blaine?" Kurt called back as Blaine reached the top floor and their master suite. "I'm out in the garden."

"What are you doing out here?" Blaine asked as he stepped outside and found his husband looking out over the park alive with the colors of late spring.

"I've just been thinking," Kurt said. He snuggled back into Blaine when the other man wrapped his arms around him. "How was the meeting with the record label?"

Blaine sighed. "They aren't happy. I don't know if we can agree on the terms for a fourth album. They hate that I didn't go with a more mainstream feel for the second and third albums. They think that I should have spent more time on tour and trying to promote them."

"But?" Kurt prompted.

"But I don't want to do all of that," Blaine said. "You know I love performing, but I have no desire to spend all of my time pandering to the masses. I want to make the music I want to make. I want to perform in small clubs, not massive arenas where you can't even see the people in the first row."

"So, what are you going to do about it?" Kurt asked.

"I think I want to make my own albums," Blaine said. "I want to do things my way. I know enough about the process now that I think I could get the right producer in and still keep creative control."

Kurt turned in his arms and smiled at his husband. "I've been waiting for you to realize that."

Blaine frowned. "What do you mean?"

Kurt shrugged and pulled Blaine inside their sitting room. He pulled open a drawer in the credenza and found a file which he handed to Blaine. "Those are the architectural plans to convert two of the suites on the second floor into a recording studio. There's also a business plan for starting up your own record label. I thought maybe we could keep it small and simple at first. Maybe just you and Mercedes?"

Blaine grinned. "I love that plan. I've been trying to promote her to all of the contacts I've made over the years but no one is interested in listening. This will be great. And I know who we can hire to run the label."

"Who?" Kurt asked.

"Remember that kid we interviewed for the assistant position a few years ago?" Blaine said. "Tyrone has been working his way up and around every department of the record label since he got a job there. He's been learning everything he can about how to run a label. He's smart and ambitious. He may not stay with us forever, but I think he's the right person to get the label off the ground."

"We'll have to talk to Ari about establishing the business," Kurt murmured, already considering all of the details they would need to manage. "And I'll ask Quinn for recommendations for a marketing firm. Then there's-"

"Kurt," Blaine interrupted. "We can talk about all of that tomorrow, can't we? I'm pretty sure we had plans for tonight."

Kurt grinned at his husband. "You're right. We do. I can't believe we've been married for ten years already."

"I can't believe that you found an ice sculpture of a warbler for our anniversary party," Blaine told Kurt as he pulled him towards the French doors to their bedroom. "I also can't believe that you haven't been getting ready for this event for the last three hours."

"I've mellowed with age," Kurt said with a smile. "Besides, I really wanted to have a little private celebration with my husband beforehand, and it seemed pointless to get showered when I planned to just get messy again when you got home."

"Messy?" Blaine asked hopefully as he shut the world outside.

"Very messy," Kurt said with mock seriousness. "But we have to hurry. Our guests will be arriving in less than two hours."

Blaine practically dragged a laughing Kurt to their bed and tackled him there. "I love you, my husband."

"And I you," Kurt smiled and kissed Blaine. "Forever."

"And always," Blaine whispered.

**The End**

**A/N: **Well, that's another story finished. Like I warned in the beginning... it was not much more than fluff to make me happy. Hope you enjoyed it though. I appreciate all the great comments and support!

On another note, I was recently asked why I don't post more often anymore. The short answer is that I haven't been writing as much... or at least not finishing anything. The long answer is that I have been testing out other fandoms to see if I have anything good to add (specifically, Criminal Minds, Buffy, Sentinel, Sherlock, and Psych). So far, I haven't really felt like I've gotten the voices or styles down for any of those shows, but I keep trying. Some of you may now ask why I don't just stick to what I know... well, my muse gets easily bored as you can probably tell from the fact that I've written in so many fandoms already.

The point of this now epic length note is this: I am still writing, but it will likely be months in between submissions for a while yet. Thank you to my loyal readers, for sticking around. **Jules**


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